Looking inside
by Evil Chococat
Summary: On returning to Central for the Fuhrer's ball Alphonse's worries are eased by a young military officer. Will the romance live on after that magical night or will he find himself alone again...? Reviews welcome!
1. An unexpected event

**Disclaimer: FMA is not mine at all, I claim no connection to it whatso**_**ever! **_

**A/N: I noticed that Ed always seems to get the girl in FMA – Winry, Rose, Armony - he's rather a ladies man! But his younger brother, Al, doesn't seem to get a look in! It really annoyed me. After all, a fourteen year old boy trapped in a suit of armor needs some loving too!**

**And so this fanfic was born. **

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**The train slipped through the valleys of lush green grass and blossoming trees. Children on red brick bridges waved eagerly as the polished carriages sped below them in a gush of wind. The blue sky was the only element able to keep up with the flowing train; the white clouds sailed lazily in the gleaming golden sunshine. 

The occupants of the cabins relaxed on red, well kept seats. A business man dressed in a smartly tailored black suit shook his paper out whilst trying to avoid staring at the person, or _thing_, in front of him. He wiped his forehead briefly. The day was abnormally warm for spring.

He tried once more to focus on his paper but, as always, his eyes drifted up to stare at the silver suit of armour in the booth in front of him. Was it a man or a woman? He didn't know. Every now and again a single, tinkling voice slipped out of the armour to scold or question his companion – a short, long haired blonde youth with a surly attitude, the man noted. He thought he heard the armour call the boy '_nii-san_(older brother)', but he must have been mistaken. If they were brothers, the armour boy would have be twice the youth's age in order to fit into such a cumbersome thing. And in this weather! The man sighed and wiped his sweaty forehead again. The young today were becoming more and more eccentric with each passing generation. He blamed the parents. Out of control parents led to out of control children – as was evident from these two louts. He muttered incoherently and shook his paper agitatedly, trying once more to focus on the printed words.

Alphonse Elric, oblivious to the man's inward mutterings, sat tidily on the seat with his metallic hands neatly folded on his silver lap. He watched the passing villages with interest and had waved with a slight chuckle to the small children on the bridges, remembering when he and his brother had once done the same. He looked over at his brother across from him and thought that things had never changed. His brother still slept with his belly exposed leaving him prone to getting ill and he still snored with his mouth wide open. Al sighed as Edward Elric's blonde head drooped down to his chest, causing him to drool over his black jacket.

A woman pushing a trolley with small delicacies and refreshments passed them. "Would you like anything to drink, sir?" She asked pleasantly while wondering curiously why anyone would wear heavy armour in spring.

"Oh, no thank you!" Al said in his tinkling voice and bowed slightly.

"Would your friend like something…?"

Al glanced at Ed, who's metallic hand had started twitching. Getting Ed to wake up was like courting death – the blonde was _not _a happy bunny when forced to leave dreamland. Al preferred the option of living. "No," he finally replied. "It's fine."

The woman nodded, bowed and pushed her trolley onwards.

Al turned his attention back to the window and contemplated on the path his brother and he were travelling. A small part of him still wondered whether or not they had made the right decision of burning down their house and leaving Risembool. He was not so stupid as to assume that the transmutation of their mother had been the right thing to do – he regretted it completely. But transmuting their mother and burning down their house were completely separate decisions. Nevertheless, the decision was carried through and Al knew too well that you can never go back and a part of him wished that he could – he would have, for once, liked to have had a home to go back to. Somewhere to retreat to when the world proved too much.

The scenery outside of the window changed. More houses replaced the rolling hills and roads with cars sprang up where there should have been rows of trees. The buildings gradually became taller, fatter and darker as they reached the center of the city. Al shifted in his seat nervously, feeling once more the trepidation he always felt when coming to Central – he never lost the feeling he got when he first entered Central. It had been amazing for Al, a small country boy, to suddenly arrive in a bustling, noisy city so far away from his own quiet hometown. It was only the beginning of his adventures but he had felt he had experienced the most extraordinary thing he would face in his entire life. Looking back, Al knew that he was very naïve – he had traveled to places far more amazing, and arguably more mysterious, than Central. Despite his knowledge of that, he still couldn't shake off the feeling of nervousness he always felt when entering the city.

A voice crackled over the intercom of the train. The man (or was it woman? Al couldn't tell over the static hissings of the speaker) sounded bored and aloof as he reported, "Central Station, Central Station. Now approaching Central Station."

Ed snapped awake immediately, jerking from his deep slumber and sitting upright. He glared at his brother with his golden eyes, "What did I miss?"

Al wasn't startled by his brother's violent awakening. It was a regular occurrence. "We just arrived in Central, nii-san." He replied calmly.

"Any sight of that damn Colonel?" Ed growled and crackled his knuckles mischievously.

Al sighed. "No, nii-san." He didn't mention that he saw hardly any people due to the buildings surrounding both sides of the train as they drew deeper into the city.

Ed continued to mutter to himself. "He won't catch me off guard this time. That damn bastard, I'll show him who's better at alchemy…"

"Nii-san! Don't go causing any trouble!"

"Who?" He turned his glinting eyes on his younger brother and grinned wickedly. "Me?"

Al sighed again, already predicting what the future held in store and not looking forward to it at all. He wished that his older brother was still asleep.

"Now stopping at Central Station. Now stopping at Central Station." The bored, disembodied voice sounded as though it couldn't wait to get off the train itself and go home.

The train slid to a graceful stop. Porters dressed in navy blue uniforms opened the doors with a united thump and waited to help passengers off the train.

"All right!" Ed cheered loudly and bounded off the train enthusiastically, leaving Al to grab their brown suitcase and hurry after him.

"Wait! Nii-san!" Al called and bowed apologetically to the people they had pushed pass. "Nii-san!" He jogged after his brother, the sound of clanking metal echoing across the station. He was used to the uncomfortable stares people shot at him and continued to follow the blonde.

They finally stopped near the exit of the station. Al strolled up to Ed and looked around. "It seems that the Colonel isn't here yet."

"That's just typical." Ed said loudly and folded his arms in annoyance. "He interrupts us during our break to order us back here and says he'll meet us – but what does he do? He forgets! I wouldn't be surprised if he called us as a joke! That rotten little piece of –"

A cheerful voice called out over the usual hustle and bustle of the station. "Good morning, shrimp!"

Ed froze to the spot and growled low in his throat. Al turned around to see who had called out even though he had a small idea. A tall, black haired figure strode towards them and waved.

"Good morning, Col-" Al began but was cut off by his brothers threats, who had been waiting quietly for Al's confirmation.

"Who did you call a bean so tiny that you wouldn't be able to pick him out in a handful of beads?!" Ed's metallic fist clenched angrily and he turned with the look of a murderer to face his insulter. "You damn-"

"Nii-san!" Al called out in warning but it was too late. Ed walked blindly into a brick wall. He slivered to the ground and nursed his bleeding nose, tears of frustration and reproach shining in his eyes as he muttered obscenities.

Colonel Roy Mustang simply laughed. "Maybe you should look before you leap, Fullmetal!"

"Are you alright, Edward?" First Lieutenant Riza Hawkeye stepped out of Roy's shadow and crouched next to Ed. She offered him a white handkerchief.

"I'mf thine." Ed replied, still clutching his bleeding nose. He wiped it quickly with the tissue. "Fank fyou."

She smiled and stepped away to return to her place by the Colonel's side. The Colonel himself merely chuckled. "Well, Fullmetal, I suppose I should be grateful for you coming today despite it being your holiday."

Ed simply growled, the will to fight leaving him. Al asked, "Why were we asked to come to Central, Colonel?"

The group of four slowly made their way down the steps to the main street. Cars dropping off and picking up travelers trundled down the street. Clusters of people gathered to talk small talk. Strolling street vendors shouted out their wares besides the station and across the street besides a large, sparkling water fountain as the cars whirled around the large roundabout and children dashed across the road to anxious calling mothers.

"As you know, the Fuhrer's birthday is coming up…" Roy began to answer Al's question.

"That old geezer? You mean he's still in power?" Ed shot a meaningful glance at Roy and snickered quietly. His comment was carefully toned so that only the four of them could hear it.

Roy glared at him. "Silence, Fullmetal. As I was saying before I was rudely interrupted," he glared at Ed again as they approached a parked car and opened the doors to get inside, "The Fuhrer's birthday is approaching which also means that the military ball to celebrate it is coming up."

"Military ball?" Al piped up in the backseat. "But with so many personnel wouldn't it be rather crammed?" There were so many Majors and Colonels and Generals in the military that the idea of them all being in one dancehall made him think of packed sardines in a can. If they were all going to attend then there wouldn't be much room for dancing.

Riza Hawkeye turned on the ignition of the car and steered the vehicle into the street. "Only a select few are invited." She told him.

The Colonel nodded beside her. "And it seems the two of you have been requested to attend."

Al's eyes widened with delight at the idea of a ball. He knew from pictures from his childhood books what it would be like. Handsome men in dashing tuxedos requesting beautiful, fair ladies in shimmering rainbow dresses if they would care to dance; luxurious food on pristine, white tables with shimmering silverware; the twirling, dancing couples swathed in golden light as a delicate orchestra softly played waltzes. It would be a magnificent event – and they were invited! He almost squealed with glee despite it being a very girly thing to do.

Sat beside Al, Ed was more skeptical. "You could have just told us over the phone that we had been invited." His voice hinted at there being possibly more left unsaid.

Roy turned to face them. "Seeing as you're both underage you will have to have guardians of a sort that evening." He flashed them a white grin. "The First Lieutenant and I will be your escorts."

Al's eyes grew ever wider with happiness, but his older brother wasn't quite so thrilled.

"What?!" He shouted and thrashed causing the car to sway violently. "No way!"

The Colonel simply laughed over the noise of Ed's violent death threats and Al's attempts to calm his brother down.


	2. A slight problem

**Disclaimer: See chapter 1!**

**A/N: Since this fanfic is supposed to take place near the beginning of the series, I ended up 'XX'ing the dates for the ball as dates are not specifically given in the anime. It makes life slightly easier! (laughs)**

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**The Elric brothers had been dropped off by Roy and Riza at a military hotel. Ed flung himself on to one of the blue sheeted twin beds and held the invitation above him to read it. 

"_Dear Fullmetal Alchemist_," he read out loud as Al tucked the brown suitcase into a corner of the room. "_You have been invited to attend the Fuhrer's birthday on XXday XXth XXer. Please dress appropriately for the occasion. You are allowed to bring one guest to accompany you for that evening_."

He frowned. "A 'guest'? I guess that means I can invite you, Al. Gee, what should we wear?" Ed mentally went over their few belongings. He seriously doubted that his usual attire would do for the occasion. Most of his clothes had tears in them and seriously needed to be washed.

"Maybe we should ask Colonel Mustang for help." Al suggested. Although Ed hated the idea of asking Roy how he should dress, they both knew there was no other solution. They rarely ever went clothes shopping and they had definitely never been to a ball before – the closest thing to a ball Ed could remember was when they were children and had played musical chairs with Winry. Even then he had stepped on her feet by accident.

"I guess so." Ed grumbled and read the letter again. He noticed some handwriting on the other side of the paper and turned it over. He quickly scanned over it and read aloud in an amused tone, "_You may also bring your younger brother, Alphonse Elric. He, too, may bring a guest._ So does that mean we have to take separate guests?"

Al approached his brother and took the letter to quickly read over on his own. He stammered, "I-I think so, nii-san."

"Two extra guests?!" Ed said in alarm and sat upright. "Where are we going to find two extra guests?"

"It's not compulsory." Al assured him. "At least it doesn't seem to demand that we bring any extra guests. If we choose to we can bring someone."

Ed sighed and lay on the bed with a soft plop. "I doubt anyone would notice if we didn't bring anyone. There will be lots of other people there."

Al nodded and sat down on his own bed. He read the letter again and felt a bubble of excitement. It would be their first grown up party! They hadn't been to an actual party in so long.

"Hey, Ed, what do you think-" Al stopped once seeing that Ed was curled up in a tight ball. He breathed gently as he slept, a few stray strands of blonde hair moving softly as he exhaled. Al chuckled at his brother's amazing ability to fall asleep so quickly and rose to carefully place the covers over him. '_He didn't even change,' _Al thought and knew that when Ed woke up he would complain about the wrinkles in his clothes.

Al lay down on his bed and stared up at the ceiling. The setting sun spread rosy colors across the room, turning everything a light coral shade. As he gazed up at the pink ceiling he began to wonder what the ball would be like. He imagined himself in a vast ballroom, besides the refreshment table. Glittering, golden chandeliers hung from the ceiling, the soft sound of violins and cellos drifted through the room and mingled with the light chatter. His brother had gone off to dance with a beautiful girl and over the heads of the many guests Al could see Lieutenant Hawkeye and Colonel Mustang dancing. A feeling of loneliness swept over Al as he stood alone. He was holding a champagne glass, filled with the bubbling liquid, but it was only in his hand due to a feeling of obligation since he couldn't drink. He stared at the small bubbles and wondered what time it was, and when they would finally leave. No-one went up to speak to him, no-one approached him. They were too afraid to stand near him and the unsettling thought of being a freak crossed his mind. '_I want to leave, I want to leave, I want to-'_

Al snapped out of his daydream with a small gasp. The ceiling had gone black. Shadows crept across the room in the midst of the silver moonlight. Outside the diamond stars greeted Al as he sat up on his bed to gather his thoughts. Ed's mechanical arm hung over the side of his bed and drool slipped out of his mouth lazily. Al suddenly wished that his older brother was awake so that he could share the thoughts of his day dream- no, his _nightmare – _with him. But he didn't want to face a grumpy Ed the next day and so let him sleep.

Standing by the window he looked out over the lit up Central and wondered how much of his nightmare would be true. It was highly possible that Ed would meet a pretty girl and go to dance with her. But who would dance with Al? Strangers had always approached Ed rather than him because they were scared he was some sort of psychopath; they only ever took into account Al's appearance, the outside, rather than his soul, the inside. Who could blame them? If it was he in their position he would, truthfully, avoid the man in the clanking suit of armour.

A slow sense of dread filled Al when his thoughts turned to the ball. It was going to be an uncomfortable, lonely long night…

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Edward listened to his younger brother's account of the nightmare as he feasted hungrily on his fry-up breakfast in the hotel's small but smart restaurant. He chewed thoroughly on a piece of bread and swallowed before saying, "I think you're worrying too much, Al." He grinned at him. "I wouldn't leave you alone!"

"But nii-san," Al protested. "I don't want you to have to stay with me all the time – you should be able to go and have fun. We might not get invited to another ball again."

It was true. Every year the Fuhrer held a ball to celebrate his birthday but, with a few exceptions of the higher-ranking officials, no one was ever invited to the ball twice in two years. It was a rotational offer to be fair to all personnel.

"To be honest," Ed said when biting into a slice of bacon. "I don't feel comfortable dancing with a girl. I might end up stepping on her feet and with my auto mail foot it will be a lot more painful for her."

It was another negative to add to the ever-growing list of why the two should get their original bodies back.

"I think we should stay there for two hours, to be polite, and then leave." Ed cut up his egg carefully and gulped it down.

Al nodded, slightly relieved that the event wouldn't turn out to be as bad as he had feared – especially since they wouldn't be staying there for very long. "I agree with you, nii-san!"

"And what do you agree on?" A dark voice asked them. Ed's cheerful grin dropped down to a deathly scowl and he weighed the benefits and costs of flicking his peas at the uninvited, and unwanted, guest.

Al brightened. "Good morning, Colonel Mustang!"

Roy smiled at the pair and sat down into a vacant chair besides them.

"Hey, hey," Ed scowled at him. "Who invited you to breakfast?"

"Myself." The black haired Colonel replied sweetly and ordered a coffee from the waiter. "My orders for today was to take you two out shopping." He scrunched up his handsome face at the prospect of trawling through hundreds of shop - especially with the shrimp who would no doubt create a large fuss.

Ed's scowl grew deeper. "So you're going to be following us for the day?"

"It seems so. Thank you." Roy smiled winningly at the blushing waitress and took a sip from his coffee. He watched in amusement as the waitress giggled uncontrollably to her place behind the counter. "Lieutenant Hawkeye will also be accompanying us."

"Isn't that a large escort for one shopping trip?" Al asked. "Nii-san and I could go out by ourselves."

"But you two have never been to a military ball, correct? You will need some friendly advice!" Roy laughed heartily, "I am also willing to give you advice on how to attract the ladies!" He seemed to be suggesting that the two should be hugely grateful for his generosity. Ed tried to imagine what it would be like to flick the peas directly into the Colonel's large, chuckling mouth.

Al's cheerfulness dimmed slightly as a reminder of his nightmare struck him. Ed noticed the change in attitude and quickly said, "We're not interested in dancing, Colonel."

"Nonsense! What's a ball without some dancing?"

"We're not the dancing type." Ed said sharply and drank his juice. "We're not bringing anyone either."

The Colonel rose an eyebrow. "No dates for Fullmetal? I find that hard to believe. What about that nice girl from your hometown?"

Al and Ed glanced at each other and then looked at him quizzically. "You mean Winry?" Al asked softly.

"That's the one! You should invite her." Roy smiled at them brightly. "You haven't seen her in a long time, and a ball is sure to make her day. Girls like that kind of stuff." He added in a quiet mutter and wondered to himself why girls _did _like that kind of thing.

Ed considered the suggestion and shrugged. "It wouldn't hurt to ask, right, Al?"

Al nodded enthusiastically. He was eager to see Winry again himself. "It's a good idea, nii-san!"

The Colonel motioned to the still blushing waitress for the bill. "Then it's settled. Give her a call when you're done here and then we'll head into the town."

Ignoring Ed's complaints about why they should have to hurry for the selfish Colonel, Al considered the possibility of Winry joining them. The feeling of dread abated slightly and he wondered if the ball would actually be fun.


	3. A different kind of shopping

**Disclaimer: As before...y'know...same old.****  
Out of all of the 'fics I have this one has to have the most humor in it. Maybe because the characters are so naturally funny? Either way – enjoy!**

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**Al had quickly realized upon entering the first shop selling tuxedos and suits that he would have a difficult time finding the right outfit. With such a cumbersome body there was very little available in the shops for him. He would, he decided, have to make do with an extra layer of polish. 

Despite having a much larger choice than Al, Ed was not an easy person to buy for either. The extra bulkiness of his mechanical arm meant that one sleeve would have to be slightly larger than the other. The tailoring would be difficult as it would be a custom made job and would have to be discreetly done so as not to give a lopsided shape. Although Ed would have happily gone with the first tailor (as would Al and Roy) they met, Lieutenant Hawkeye was adamant that they look around in order to find the best price, the best selection and the best skill. As a result the three men trailed after Riza and entered shop after endless shop.

"Why do women like shopping so much?" Roy grumbled when they entered the twentieth shop. There was the usual tinkling of bells and hearty greetings as they opened the door. Racks of suits covered the four walls of the building and the owner jumped up eagerly at the scent of money.

"Why do they have to go through every single shop in the street?" For once, Ed grumbled along with Roy in agreement.

"Why can't they just buy the first thing they see and be happy with it?" Al added in desperation.

The three men sighed loudly.

Riza turned to them, a handful of suits already in her arms, "What are you three grumbling about? Ed, come and try these on!"

Remembering that the first time he had resisted she had pulled a gun out at him, Ed sighed and murmured, "Yes, ma'am" as he slopped off to the changing rooms.

Roy scratched his head and mumbled. "All of this makes me wish I was back at the office."

He must have been feeling desperate, Al thought, to say that. Normally the Colonel would do anything to stay _away _from the office.

Al stood next to the Colonel and held the numerous, white-boxed parcels in his arms. He had been unanimously voted to carry the packages but he didn't particularly mind. The body he had never got tired and the weight of the packages (and judging by the looks on Roy and Ed's faces as they first carried the parcels that they were heavy) didn't hinder him.

He looked over the racks of dark suits and wondered which one he would prefer to pass the time. The black one with the blue shirt and pale blue tie looked quite nice…or the one with the white shirt. The last time he had properly worn a suit was at his mother's funeral – and memory told him that it had been uncomfortable – but this time it was different. Rather than detesting the restricting tie, Al actually wanted to wear one. He wanted to wear a posh, grown-up outfit to the posh, grow-up ball. He didn't want to go with a battered looking suit of armour who would stick out like a sore auto mail thumb. He wanted to go looking like a normal boy in gentlemen attire.

Al's deep sigh alerted Roy.

"Something on your mind?" The Colonel asked.

"O-oh, no, Colonel." He laughed nervously, feeling embarrassed by his selfish thoughts – he should be grateful that he was actually going to the ball. "I was just wondering when we would finish."

"Hmm." Roy wasn't convinced. Wildly guessing what was on the young boy's mind, he said quietly. "I wouldn't worry too much about this ball, Alphonse."

"I wasn't worrying!" Al's flustered protests made it clear that Roy had pinpointed the problem. "Maybe I'm a little nervous but…" he trailed off.

Roy laughed heartily. "There's nothing to be worried about! These balls usually follow the same routine of meeting and greeting, a little dancing for the first hour and then the room dividing into males and females with the men getting footless drunk!" He smiled up at him. "From what I could gather you two are going to leave pretty soon, right? You'll be leaving before you know it!"

"Hmm." Al murmured, thinking the Colonel's reasoning over.

"And if you're worried about what people will think," Roy muttered quietly so that only Al could hear. "They won't think anything. They'll be too focussed on their booze, women and the Fuhrer." He patted the side of the armour to comfort him.

Alphonse brightened at his words. "Really?"

"Yup. Hey, Fullmetal," Roy called out as Edward emerged from the changing rooms to be scrutinized by Riza. "That colour is good on you!"

"You think so?" Ed looked down at the pink shirt uncertainly and picked at it.

"Yeah, it's a good _shrimp _colour!" Roy grinned.

The calm shoppers passing by the shop jumped and shouted in alarm as a loud, angry voice screamed from within, "_Who are calling a shrimp, you loud mouthed, two faced, lame excuse for a soldier Colonel?!"_

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Alphonse carefully placed the last of the parcels into the boot of the car. Edward and Roy bickered noisily on the pavement as Riza frowned and scratched her head. "I thought we had one more parcel…" 

"Maybe we left one behind at last the shop?" The number of shops they had entered flickered through Al's mind. It would be so much easier to leave one behind rather than have to trawl through all of them again…but knowing Riza they would be forced to go back through all of them. He groaned inwardly at the thought.

"I made sure we had all of them before we left." She rummaged through the parcels carefully. "It must have been forgotten at the last shop."

Alphonse straightened up. "I'll go back and get it, Lieutenant."

"I can go back…" she began but Al interrupted her.

He glanced over at the squabbling pair. "I think you're the only one who can control them if things get out of hand, Lieutenant Hawkeye."

She followed his gaze and immediately caught his meaning. "Ah." She smiled. "I understand. We'll wait here until you come back then, Alphonse."

"Okay!" He turned and jogged back down the street to return to the shop.

* * *

Alphonse bowed as he left, the retrieved parcel in his hand. "Thank you – sorry again!" 

"It's quite all right, sir!" The cheerful old shop owner smiled at him. "Please come again!"

Al bowed again and closed the door of the shop. He strolled quickly back down the street, eager to meet up with the others and return to the hotel. It would be nice to spend the rest of the afternoon shop-free…

"_Oof!"_

Alphonse, the parcel and a stranger dressed in black fell to the floor in a crumpled heap. The stranger had ran out of an alleyway and straight into Al, causing them both to fall to the ground. The sound of metal meeting concrete echoed hollowly across the street and the heads of shoppers turned to see what the commotion was.

"Are you alright?" Al jumped up and tried to help the stranger to his feet. "You aren't hurt are you?"

"Ohhh." The man in black nursed his head and groaned in reply. He unsteadily wavered on his feet.

"Wait! Stop that man!" A loud shout echoed down the alley he had emerged from. The sound of feet slapping against the pavement drew nearer. "Stop him!"

"What??" Al said in confusion.

The man tensed and tried to barge past Al. His eyes were wide and lolled in terror and his voice was urgent and angry, "Let go of me!" He darted forward but slowly fell to the ground with a distinct moan.

Al attempted to catch him. "Mister! Are you al-"

"Hold it!"

The gentle click of a gun made Al jump up in alarm, his hands held up. The wavering man fell to the ground on his knees with a gentle thunk. He moaned again as he head hit against the hard floor.

"Oh!" Al moved slightly to help the man. "Mister-"

"I said, _hold it!" _A harsh voice ordered again. "If you move again, I'm gonna shoot!"

Alphonse gave a startled squeak and returned to his former 'surrender' position. "S-s-sorry!" He apologized again and turned to face the harsh sounding person.

He blinked and stared at the military uniform wearing woman, whose gun was pointed straight at Al. The gun switched its position to the man as she stared at Alphonse with narrowed green eyes.

"Are an accomplice?" She barked at him.

Alphonse jumped at the abrupt harshness of her tone. If he had a body he would have been sweating profusely. "O-o-o-o-o-oh," the gun and the murderous look in her eyes, was very unnerving. "Oh, no! He bumped into me!"

"Really," she said dryly, looking his strange outfit up and down.

"Yes!"

The gun abruptly went off and the sound echoed across the street. The shoppers screamed in alarm and scattered inside the shops for safety. Alphonse squealed in fright, "No! Don't shoot!"

The woman glanced up at him, "I didn't shoot you."

He blinked and then looked at the man who had been trying to make a smooth getaway, his face deathly white. His eyes were filled with horrified tears as he stared at the neat bullet hole in the pavement besides his right hand. A squeaky, "Mommy," escaped from his ashen lips before he fainted.

The woman sighed and tucked the gun back into the holster. She bent down and slid handcuffs on to the unconscious man and then straightened up to bow at a flustered, still terrified Alphonse. "My apologies for acting in that way. This man is a criminal who has been on the run for some time. I was lucky to be able to-"

"Alphonse!"

He turned his head at the sound of the familiar voice. "Nii-san!" He said in mild surprise as Roy, Riza and Edward ran towards him.

"We heard a gun shot." Roy explained breathlessly. "Are you ok-ahhhh!" He spotted the young, black haired officer and shouted in surprise. "Emily!"  
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**_'Emily?' _Alphonse wondered and stared at the now calm military officer who had threatened him.


	4. Answers amongst coffee

**Disclaimer: See previous chapters. Apart from Emily. She's my 'infiltrator' into the FMA world. Emily is actually named after my duck, lol. Maybe I should provide ducks in this 'fic sometime as a reference…? It's a possibility!**

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**The man who had fainted had been carted away by military officers; he was an extremist on the run from the hounding military force. Officer Emily, who had been strolling through the streets on her break, had recognized the man and immediately gave chase. The two had run down an alleyway and then collided with a passing Al. 

When Emily had noticed Edward she had asked in unfeigned delight whether he was the popular 'Fullmetal Alchemist' she had heard so much about. When answered in the affirmative, she suddenly became embarrassed and turned around to apologize profusely to Alphonse.

"I didn't realize! I am so sorry!" She bowed apologetically, slightly flustered.

Alphonse was startled by sudden abruptness of her apology but he assumed that it was just a part of her personality. He quickly tried to wave her apologies away. "It's okay! No harm done – there's no need to apologize!"

"I should have recognized that you are Alphonse Elric immediately!" She cried. "I am so sorry!"

He had been naively startled by her knowledge of his name. "How do you-"

"Alphonse Elric, the younger brother of the famous Edward Elric, wears a suit of armor." She explained to him as a way of reasoning. She bowed again. "I apologize again for my incompetence."

It had taken several minutes for Al to finally convince Emily to stop apologizing. Once she had finished bowing and repeating flustered apologies Riza had suggested that they go for a drink and a bite to eat.

The café had the usual aroma of coffee and cake as the group of five entered and settled into a pale cream booth besides a large window. Outside, the usual shoppers darted back and forth shops to get their last minute buys. Cars laden down with parcels rolled down the street as the men, equally laden down with the bulky packages and bags, hurried behind calling wives. Inside the café was a thankful escape from the hustle and bustle of the world with its calm creamy hues and polite waitresses and waiters.

As the waiter set down their coffees, Al glanced quickly at Emily. Her attitude had changed dramatically once she realized that he was not a criminal. The harsh abruptness was replaced by a calm, polite manner; the flashing anger in her vivid green eyes was dissolved completely into a sea of serenity; the sarcastic tone in her voice was smoothed over to reveal a soft, quiet accent. She was, Alphonse thought with amazement, a completely different person.

"Emily Sanders," Riza explained to the Eric brothers over the steaming cups of coffee. "Is an old acquaintance of ours from the East. She is a very reliable officer."

Emily blushed at the Lieutenants compliments as she sipped her cappuccino. "I-I'm not _that _very reliable, Lieutenant."

"Nonsense," Riza brushed the protest aside with a smile. "You are very adept and trustworthy."

"She has made quite a name for herself." Roy nodded in agreement. "She has an excellent record for catching criminals at a very fast speed. She has risen in rank, as well as popularity, despite her young age."

"You're a commanding officer?" Edward asked with interest.

"Because I'm only eighteen," Emily explained through her blushes, "they didn't think it was suitable for me to be given an official rank. If I was old enough I would hold the rank of major."

Edward spurted out his coffee in astonishment. Alphonse's glowing eyes widened as he cried out, "Major?! That's amazing!"

"Ah, it's not…that…amazing." Emily smiled as her voice trailed off quietly.

"But at eighteen…" Edward's mouth gaped open. "You can't have been in the military for very long!"

"It was just luck." She said quickly, thinking about her chance discovery of the extremist but Riza interrupted her.

"It was skill. She is very talented. And a huge advantage to the military." The Lieutenant patted the younger officers hand and sipped her own coffee. "But what are you doing in Central, Emily? I thought you were being kept in the East – they need your skills with all of the resistant movements."

"I received an invitation," the black haired woman replied, "to the Fuhrer's ball."

"That's wonderful!" Roy beamed and glanced at the brothers. "Now you two will know more faces."

Emily straightened up. "Oh, are you all going as well?"

When the answer was yes, she visibly relaxed and smiled. "That's such a relief! I was nervous about going since I wouldn't know anyone. I hope it's fun…" There was a trace of nervousness in her voice.

"It will be," Alphonse interjected brightly. "Since we know some more people it's a huge relief to us as well."

She smiled at his words, "Yes. You're right."

Alphonse couldn't understand why, but seeing Emily smile like that made him want to smile as well despite him not having a body. He couldn't deny that she was a pretty woman and a part of him felt oddly comforted by looking in her eyes.

'_Why does she make me feel so comfortable when she was pointing a gun at me only a hour earlier?' _He wondered in confusion. The human mind worked in very mysterious ways.

Roy and Edward watched the exchange with amusement and glanced at each other with knowing looks. Ed slurped on his coffee noisily and set his cup down loudly. The action jerked his younger brother back to reality. "Anyway! It was a pleasure to meet you, Miss Sanders, but we must be going!"

Al suddenly realized that the light outside had dimmed and the lights inside the café were just flickering on. "It's so late!" He murmured.

"Perhaps we could give you a lift?" Riza offered as they stood and slid out of the booth.

"Oh no," Emily waved her hands anxiously. "It's fine – I'm staying at a hotel just five minutes away."

The air outside was fresh and cool as they stepped into the street. Emily shivered slightly and felt goose bumps crawl up her skin beneath the slight warmth of the blue military uniform. She saluted the Colonel and Lieutenant; "I look forward to seeing you at the ball."

"Yes," Roy replied and saluted her in return. "We shall see you then."

She bowed at the Elric brothers. "It was nice to meet you both."

Edward and Alphonse also bowed. "It was nice to meet you as well." Ed replied politely.

Emily smiled and waved as she walked away. As Alphonse watched her retreating back he wondered how a simple smile could be so full of warmth.


	5. Wavering doubts

**Disclaimer: I do not own FMA and if I do lay claim to them then you may take and burn all of my anime and manga. But I don't. So all of you pyromaniacs can stay away!!! Although I do take credit for Emily. Ahahahahahahahaha! (laughter of a maniac)**

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It had arrived. The day of the ball. Alphonse was watching the clock anxiously, counting the time down hour after hour until the dreaded moment arrived when he and Edward would meet Colonel Mustang and Lieutenant Hawkeye to go to the ball.

Al sat on the bed in his room anxiously and twisted his unfeeling hands. He didn't want to go. He didn't want to have to face the seas of endless questioning eyes as he walked in to the large room and hear their unasked, muted questions, '_What is _that_?!' _He got enough of that from the streets, but that wasn't so bad. In the streets there were places he could duck into – shortcuts he could take – shadowed places were he could hide and creep alone. But in an expansive ball_room_ there would be no place to hide, no shadows, no alleys – nothing. He would be fully exposed without any route of escape. There was no way he could get out of it – to not turn up would be rude and disrespectful towards the Fuhrer. He _had _to go no matter how uncomfortable it made him feel.

Al buried his armored face in his hands, feeling comfort in the slight darkness as the burning sunlight was shut out. He had never preferred the darkness when he was a child – he had always wanted light. Light was warm and soothing. It scared away the demons, filtered out the shadows, and took away the blackness. It was fulfilling.

But since that day when he and his brother had transmuted their mother he had preferred the dark. The light from that circle wasn't warm and comforting anymore; it was harsh and blinding. That light which had given so much happiness to them took that same happiness away. It was empty.

And yet, despite him knowing that the light was harsh, he knew that the light was warm and the darkness did not have that warmth. Alphonse liked the warmth. Even though he had a body which couldn't feel and couldn't remember what the warmth was actually like without that sense, he could still see it in people. Like that girl, Emily. She was so full of warmth. How could one person hold so much warmth?

The possibility of seeing her tonight at the ball lifted Al's mood. It would be nice to see her…and maybe even see that smile, and warmth, again.

"Hey, Al? What's up?"

He lifted his head upon hearing Edward's voice. Ed had just come out of the shower. His wet blonde hair dripped down his exposed chest as he reached for a shirt to pull on. The trouser legs dragged against the floor, threatening to trip him up.

"Nothing, nii-san." Al replied in his usual tinkling, upbeat voice. His head was still staring down at the floor.

His older brother frowned and leaned over to peer up into Al's white eyes. "You're not fooling me. Is the ball still bugging you?"

"Hm." He turned away.

Ed sighed in frustration. "C'mon, Al! Talk to me!" He scowled at his younger brother again, considering the possible factors that could have led to Al's depression. An evil glint shone in his eye as he asked teasingly, "Is it a girl?"

"What?!" Al jerked up and waved his hands frantically. "No! Nii-san, what gave you that idea?!"

The extreme reaction proved that Ed had found the source of the problem. "It is a girl!" He laughed and danced around the room gleefully. "Alphonse Elric is love sick! I bet it's Emily!"

"Nii-san!" Al's embarrassed voice rang out in protest but the blonde ignored him as he began to sing.

"Al and Emily, sitting in a tree! K-I-S-S-I-N-G!"

"_Nii-san! _Shut up!" Al began to chase Ed around the room.

"First comes love then comes marriage then comes Emily with a baby carri-"

"_Nii-san!!!"_

There was a loud crash as the two fell to the floor after jumping off one of the beds. Ed was still laughing hysterically as he lay on the cold floor. Alphonse quickly got up and scolded his brother, "There's nothing going on between me and Emily, nii-san!"

"Oh, sure," Ed cracked up. "You say that now!" A laugh got caught in his throat and he began to cough despite there being a large grin on his face.

"What's going on?" A feminine voice demanded.

Al immediately became flustered and assumed that the noise had attracted the hotel staff. "I'm sorry! We didn't mean to-" he suddenly realized who was at the door. "Winry!"

"Hey!" Their childhood friend replied cheerfully and approached Al. "How are you doing, Al? What's Ed doing on the floor?" She kicked the coughing boy with the edge of her shoe. "Is he dying or something?"

"No," Ed rasped as he stood up and nursed his aching ribs. "I was just talking to Al about his new girlfri-"

"Nii-san was just being weird as always!" Al laughed nervously and cut him off. He shot him a quick look filled with murderous intent (which didn't cease Ed's chuckles) and asked, "Did you just get here?"

"Yeah," Winry replied slowly and suspiciously. She would have to beat the information out of Ed later. For the present she gushed and squealed. "I'm so excited about going to the ball tonight! It's going to be sooooo cool!"

Ed nodded and began plaiting his damp hair. "I'm not looking forward to wearing the suit though." He grimaced.

"Its only for a few hours. Just imagine what it'll be like! The music," her eyes twinkled madly and the girlish dreams raced through her mind. "The food! The dresses! How elegant!" She covered her face in her hands and giggled in a high-pitched squeal as Ed and Al looked on, mutely horrified. When she had recovered from her girly outburst she asked, "Aren't you looking forward to it?"

Ed shrugged his shoulders, not particularly caring. Al replied in a meek voice, "Yeah, it'll be great."

Winry agreed profusely and continued to chatter away about the excitement and thrills of attending a ball. As Al listened to her good-humored talk he also began to feel a tweak of excitement. With Winry there it certainly wouldn't be dull, Ed would also be welcome company along with the Colonel and Lieutenant, and with the possibility of Emily being there as well…his nightmare had probably been his over active imagination and maybe he would actually have fun tonight.


	6. Gathering wallflowers

**Disclaimer: Ditto chapter 1. And 2. And 3. And 4. And 5. Surely everyone knows it off by heart by now?**

**I've been looking forward to writing this chapter – yay, ball!**

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The ball was as he had imagined. The glittering gowns, the tranquil sound of violins, the delicate layout of food on pristine white tablecloths, the tinkle of glasses and hum of chatter. Couples gathered on the dance floor and twirled in time to the music. He could see Colonel Mustang, clad in military uniform and his medals from the war glistening, dancing expertly with Lieutenant Hawkeye who gleamed in a pink, flowing dress. Towards the right, after much persuasion, Edward in his carefully chosen suit nervously danced with Winry who had picked a soft blue dress for the occasion. It had taken a while, but Alphonse had convinced them to dance, resulting in him standing alone beside the buffet table, glass in hand, just like in his nightmare. 

But it wasn't so bad. Yes, he couldn't actually drink the bubbling liquid. Yes, people had stared at him as they had walked in. Yes, there was a faint sense of loneliness. But Alphonse knew that as soon as the dance was over Edward would hurry back to him. He could tell that his older brother wasn't happy about leaving him alone – but since it was their first time at a ball, and possibly their last, Al didn't want him to miss out on a dance.

He shifted his feet anxiously and focussed on the soft lilt of the strings. A couple walked by him, drinking their champagne and giggling at a private joke. The swish of fabric of the lady's dress swept past him. They glanced up at him and then quickly diverted their eyes. Their footsteps quickened and soon they were lost in the crowd.

Alphonse sighed and stared down at his glass. Deciding that it looked stupid in his hand, he set it down on the table and folded his arms restlessly. This song seemed to go on forever. When would it end? Just when he thought it had reached the crescendo down it plunged again to begin another verse. Time crawled by sluggishly and he wondered how long they had spent at the ball already. An hour? Two? Too long. When would they leave and go back to their own world – their world beyond the glistening mahogany door involving long train rides, occasional brutal fights with livid homunculi and an endless search through books and rumours to find that one stone?

He wanted to go back to that. This world of glitz and riches didn't suit him. He doubted it suited Edward but that was hard to decide – from what he could see Ed looked pretty happy dancing with Winry. Maybe dancing with someone changed your perspective on everything. _But what do I know? _Al thought bitterly as the dancing crowd endlessly swirled and sashayed on.

"Alphonse?"

He started at the sound of his name and turned to look down the table. "Oh," he said in pleasant surprise and bowed slightly. "Good evening, Emily."

The young officer smiled and blushed. "Good evening. I didn't see you tucked away there."

Al had been standing near a white pillar and, indeed, was mostly enshrouded in the shadows. Emily held her own champagne glass and glistened in a green gown in the chandeliers golden glow. Suddenly he felt embarrassed and foolish for trying to hide away in the darkness. He took a step forward to emerge in the light again. "Yeah, I didn't realize that I was…uh…hidden away like…that." His words trailed off in an embarrassing low tone. He realized that he sounded totally stupid and wished that Gluttony would jump down and swallow him whole.

Luckily, Emily didn't seem to notice his embarrassment (or chose to ignore it) as she asked, "Are you alone?" Her gentle green eyes scanned the crowd quickly to see if anyone else she knew was present.

"No," Al waved a hand uselessly, noted that it looked pathetic, and quickly folded his arms again. "They're dancing."

"I see." She murmured softly and sipped her drink.

'_So now she must think I'm a total idiot,' _Al fretted quietly. '_Everyone else is dancing and here I am, standing on my own and hiding in the corner like some sort of criminal. She must think that I'm pathetic – a complete and utter pri-'_

"Al?" Emily cut through his panic-stricken thoughts.

"Oh, er, yes?" _Great, real smooth. _

She smiled and placed her glass down on the table. She held out her hand and looked up at him. "Would you like to dance?"

He stood rooted to the spot. The sweet sounding question drummed around his hollow helmet relentlessly. _Is she…asking me to…_? "Ah!" He stuttered in surprise. "O-okay! But I don't really know how to…"

She smiled brightly and grabbed his arm. She tugged him towards the dance floor and said reassuringly, "Don't worry! I'll show you!" She stood in front of him and placed one hand lightly in his, then pulled his other hand around to rest on her waist. Alphonse was embarrassed by the closeness of the contact but didn't pull away; partly because it would have been rude, partly because he would disturb other dancers and partly, yes, because he sort of liked it.

"Put your right foot back." She told him.

"Ah, ah, okay." He nervously stepped back, wondering if he was going to step into anyone.

"Don't be nervous!" She smiled at him. "We won't crash into anyone!"

"I'm more worried about stepping on you."

She laughed and Al brightened at the sound. "You won't step on me! Now put your left foot forward…"

Emily continued to instruct him to the rhythm of the music while muttering, "One two three, one two three, one two…" she trailed off until they were dancing without the aid of her voice. "See! We're dancing!"

"Y-yeah!" Al replied enthusiastically.

"It wasn't too hard, right?" She teased and beamed up at him as they made their way across the dance floor.

He concentrated on the steps as they moved smoothly. "You're right…" He noticed Edward flash a wide grin and a wink at him as he sailed past with Winry. Al couldn't help but chuckle with delight.

"I'm glad you're here." Emily murmured quietly after a few minutes. "I felt so useless standing alone…I don't know anyone here really." She bit her lip nervously, wondering if she had said too much.

Alphonse immediately recognized her anxiety and quickly reassured her. Squeezing her hand gently he replied, "I felt the same! Everyone I knew were dancing and I felt…alone."

Emily's body seemed to relax as they continued to waltz. Al marvelled at the gentle weight of her delicate hand in his.

"We're a bunch of wallflowers, huh?" She said softly, with a hint of amusement in her voice.

He considered the thought for a while. "But," he looked down and made his voice light and joking, "even wallflowers keep each company."

Emily simply laughed with delight at his reply.


	7. Hand in hand

**Disclaimer: Apart from the creation of Emily, the rest of FMA, plus any references to it, are to be entirely credited to Arakawa-sensei. **

**The aftermath of the ball…it was hard thinking of what to do next to be honest (lol).  
NOTE: Eki-kyabe is a cure for hangovers. **

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It had been a long night after Alphonse, Edward and Winry had returned to the hotel, drunk on giddiness from experiencing the magic of a military ball. After excitedly going over everything in detail – the food, the outfits, the music, the speeches – Edward and Winry had fallen asleep with exhaustion on the soothing, comfortable hotel beds. Alphonse sat on the red sofa in the dark room, the silver moonlight crossing the walls and reflecting off the lone suit of armour softly. He knew that even if he was able to sleep he wouldn't – he was buzzing with excitement all over.

The memory of seeing Emily, dancing with her, the sound of the sweet, sweet music in the background mingling with her bell-like laugh. The way they had stood next to each other and clapped politely as the Fuhrer and his subordinates made speeches wishing the success of the military and for the Fuhrer to continue to have a long and successful career. The way that Emily had beamed up at Al when he glanced down at her quickly. The way that she had thanked him for the wonderful night and left, saying that she hoped that they met again.

Whether it was customary politeness for her to say that, Al would never find out. But if there was a slight, a _slight_, possibility that what she said was genuine…the idea made him squirm with delight. He wanted to see her again. He wanted to hear that laugh, see that smile, look at that face…he wanted to meet the person who had truly treated him as Alphonse Elric the boy, rather than Alphonse Elric the armour.

* * *

Winry Rockbell wandered through the main shopping high street of Central the following morning. She spotted a group of young women cooing and pointing at a selection of jewellery in a shop window across the street.

"Oh, that silver one is so precious!"

"That gold one is beautiful! It's expensive but so worth it!"

She watched in silence as the gaggling group huddled themselves into the shop. Darting a glance up and down the round to make sure it was clear of cars, she softly jogged over and peered into the window out of interest, wondering what the fuss was all about. The sparkling jewellery gleamed up at her. Translucent pearls sent in gold necklaces, gorgeous but unlucky opal and diamond rings, sultry sapphires and red wine rubies in silver bracelets…Winry passed a quick eye over each of the gems and felt that none of the artificial jewels were worth their value.

And they _were _artificial. They weren't in the same league as the coolness of iron, the smooth touch of chrome, the musky perfume of oil and polish – these puny metals and soft stones didn't have as much as soul as automail, or as much reliability. They were simply carved and churned out, carved and churned out, again and again and again and again. They're weren't elaborately planned or carefully constructed – they didn't have a function, they just sat there and sparkled.

Winry watched with a piercing blue eye as the women exited the shop and giggled over their new diamonds and pearls on their long, manicured fingernails and toned arms. She did wonder, sometimes, if she should be girlier – if she should fuss over her appearance, experiment with makeup and hairstyles, go broke buying designer clothes. But it just didn't feel comfortable. It felt like…she was being another clone (plus the fact that those shoes hurt like _hell. _She had blisters from the ball and couldn't wait for them to heal). She had been excited at going to the ball, but she couldn't spend every day of her life getting dressed up. If she had done it every day, the fun and excitement would be taken out of it – there would be no magic. And she didn't want to lose that.

She sighed again, still staring at the ardent display when a clear voice ran out, "Winry!"

She turned and saw Emily, dressed in her casual clothes (those who went to the ball got the following day off due to possible hangovers and any potential food poisoning), running towards her. "Hi, Emily!" She replied enthusiastically.

"How are you? Any hangovers?" The black haired girl beamed at her.

She laughed in reply, "No! Though I was expecting Ed to get a hangover. He's still asleep. Al is at the hotel too. What about you?"

"No, I didn't drink much. It must be only us. I saw Lieutenant Hawkeye this morning and she was buying eki-kyabe for herself and the Colonel."

"I didn't know she drank alcohol!" Out of all of the people she knew, Winry expected Riza to be the most non-alcoholic. Her self-restraint made it hard to imagine her letting her hair down (literally).

"I know, I was surprised too." Emily gestured towards the shop. "I'm sorry, were you about to buy something?"

She shook her head, the blonde strands brushing against her shoulders. "Nah, I was just looking. Jewellery isn't the same as automail…"

"Automail?" Emily brightened. "Edward has that, doesn't he?"

"Yes, Granny and I made it for him."

A look of astonishment swept across her face. "You _made _it? That's incredible! I don't know much about automail but is always amazes me. Could you tell me more about it?" She suddenly blushed and added in a stammering voice, "O-Oh! I'm sorry! You must be busy! Maybe we could talk about it another time?"

Winry smiled, "I'm not busy at all! We can talk about it now."

The two girls beamed at each other, linked arms and strolled down the street talking excitedly as though they had been friends forever.

* * *

Emily and Winry had wound up at the hotel restaurant for lunch. The restaurant was only half full, and many of the occupants had only lately risen and were ordering cups of coffee in an effort to ease their aching heads. The girls sat next to the window and the world sped by as they talked and giggled. The subject quickly turned to the Elric brothers.

"Gee, aren't those guys up yet?" Winry huffed and looked at the golden clock above the empty bar. It was near one o'clock. "They're so lazy!"

Emily chuckled and picked at a few leftover chips from her lunch and quoted the old saying, "Boys will be boys."

"Even for boys there's a limit on how long you can sleep in."

"You've known them all your life, right?" She chewed on a chip and offered the plate to Winry who speared the potato wedges with her fork.

"Yeah, we grew up together in Risembool. They were lazy then, too." She commented dryly. "Although Ed was lazier than Al – he always tried to get Al to do his chores."

Emily laughed. "The typical older brother, huh?" Winry nodded and they chuckled together. "It's surprising that Alphonse is so much more taller than Edward…even though there is only a years difference between them."

Winry blinked in confusion, "Al is-" she stopped herself suddenly and then realized – _Emily didn't know. _Of course she wouldn't know, she scolded herself quickly, it wasn't as if the brothers just blurted out to everyone they met that Al was only around because his soul was attached to a suit of armour. If people knew then he most likely would be taken to some lab to be experimented on!

"What is it?" Emily asked.

"Oh, er…" Her mind worked furiously, "I was just going to say that Al is more fond of milk than Ed. So that's why Ed is shorter than him," Winry babbled quickly.

"Who're you calling 'short'?!" A loud voice demanded, causing some of the officers to wince. "Oh, sorry." Ed waved a hand apologetically at the scowls that was directed his way. Alphonse also bowed apologetically. Edward reached Winry and Emily and tugged on a strand of her hair. "Eh?" He demanded again quietly. "Who you calling a pipsqueak?"

"I didn't say that! Get off, Mr I-don't-get-up-till-one-in-the-afternoon." She batted him away.

"It's only one hour after morning – what's the diff?" He pulled out a chair and sat down. "Hello, Emily."

"Hi Edward, Alphonse." Emily smiled at them.

"Good afternoon, Emily." Al replied as he sat down. Ed signalled to the waiter to serve coffee.

"Have you recovered from your hangover?" Winry teased him.

"What hangover? I don't drink! I'm a minor!" He replied sharply, causing people to glare at him again. "Ah, sorry."

"Bet that didn't stop you…" she murmured and ate another chip.

"Alphonse, would you like some of these?" Emily gestured towards the plate.

Al waved his hands, "Ah, n-no thank you! Ed and I had some breakfast…lunch…er, food taken brought up to us when we got up." He finished, clearly embarrassed.

Ed and Winry grinned at each other, both sharing the same thought – Al clearly had a crush on Emily. In silent agreement they both stood up.

"Ed, I need to do some check ups on your arm. Do you mind if I check it now, before I leave tomorrow?" Winry asked innocently.

"Yeah, sure. No probs." He agreed enthusiastically.

Al started to get up too, "I'll come with you."

"Why don't you stay here, show Emily around? You said it's been a while since you've been here, right, Emily?" Winry asked.

Emily blinked in surprise, "Y-Yeah, it has."

"It's settled then!" Ed patted Al on his arm. "We'll see you two later."

Before Al could protest or come up with any excuse the two slipped away quickly, their eyes glinting evilly and their hands covering their sniggering mouths.

A silence fell on the table. Al twisted his hands nervously and Emily bit her lip anxiously.

"We-" Al started.

"I-" Emily said at the same time.

They stopped and laughed quietly, Emily's cheeks glistening a pale pink.

"Sorry," Al said lightly, "what were you going to say?"

"I was, er…" she faltered, her face turning to a rosy red. "I was, um, going to say that I wouldn't mind…well, walking around Central for a while. With you." Her eyes flickered up to him and down to her fidgeting hands again.

Al felt a wave of relief and a tinge of excitement sweep over him. "Sure. Where did you want to go?" He stood up and offered her his hand.

Emily looked up at him in surprise and then smiled warmly, one of Al's favourite smiles. She placed her hand in his and replied simply, "Anywhere."

Winry and Edward grinned and gave each other the thumbs up as they watched in the shadows behind the restaurant doors.


	8. Lucky ducks

**Disclaimer: I only claim Emily-chan as mine! The rest of FMA related stuff is not mine! And I said I'd put in DUCKS! XD  
This one is kinda short actually...I'll make the next one longer! Hopefully...**

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**Alphonse didn't know where to take Emily and so they had wandered the streets randomly as he pointed out various landmarks – a statue, a historical building, the ice-cream parlour – and mentioned his brief knowledge of them. 

"You know this place so well!" She had remarked in amazement.

"N-not really." Al stammered, quietly embarrassed by her compliment. He rubbed the back of his metal head bashfully. "Colonel Mustang told me a lot about Central when Lieutenant Hawkeye was helping nii-san find an outfit for the ball."

"She did a good job! Edward looked really handsome last night." She smiled and softly patted Alphonse's large arm. "So did you."

A voice inside of Al's head squealed. "M-m-m-me?! I didn't look any different!"

She shook her head, her black locks waving behind her. "No, you looked…less lonely."

He stared at her in surprise. "Less…lonely?"

"Yes. You seem sad sometimes…as though you lost something very dear to you." Her green eyes were soft as she gazed up into his own eyes. Suddenly her face turned red and her eyes widened in embarrassment. "Oh! I'm sorry! I'm not trying to pry or anything! I'm sorry!" Her hands flew up to her boiling cheeks and she mumbled, "U-uh I'll go get us some cokes!" Before he could stop her she was already on the other side of the street.

'_She's very astute.' _He thought to himself as he watched her in silence as she ordered the drinks from an outside café. '_Or maybe we're too transparent.'_

Emily hurried back across the road with a drink in either hand, her embarrassment gone and a grin on her face.

He took the offered drink from her and bowed slightly. "Thank you."

She sipped her drink through a pink straw, "I've just heard there's a carnival in town – do you want to go?"

The idea of a carnival lifted his mood instantly. It would be fun – the balloons, the laughter of children, the various acts. Alphonse lowered the drink from his helmet (he had been pretending to drink it), "Sure! That's a great idea."

"I think it's over on the next street." She grabbed his hand and pulled him behind him as she began to run. "Come on!"

His eyes had widened slightly in surprise when she had grabbed his hand but now he laughed in delight as they ran down the street towards the carnival, spilling coke across the grey pavement as they went.

* * *

Emily gasped, her hands on her knees as she leaned down to get her breath back. She wiped the tiny beads of sweat from her forehead, "Hahhh, I haven't run like that in ages!" 

"Me neither!" Alphonse agreed, trying to make his voice breathless.

She waved a hand, "Aren't you hot in the armour?"

"Oh," he flexed his arms up and down energetically. "No! Not at all! My sensei told me it was a good way to get strong – wearing armour, I mean."

"Really? You're training?"

He nodded.

"That's so cool! You're so dedicated!" She grinned and once again Al looked down at the pavement in embarrassment. "I would probably give up after ten minutes!" She laughed and stood up and stretched her arms. She turned to him and held out her hand, "Shall we go in?"

Al nodded and took her hand. "Yeah."

The day was turning to dusk and the carnival's colourful lanterns were lit, casting a soft glow on the people below. Fairy lights were strung from stand to stand making it seem as though the stars themselves were coloured rainbows. There was a variety of people – a father in a suit being conned out his money by his two younger children who begged for candyfloss and hot dogs; an old lady leaning heavily on her walking stick as she watched her husband vainly attempt to relive his glory days as a military officer as he shot at water balloons with a fake air rifle; a mother attempting to catch a goldfish for her children. The sounds of carnival music and laughter filled the warm air – the atmosphere was calm and content. No-one stared at Al as he walked past – they were too busy enjoying themselves to wonder what others was doing. He felt comfortable in this environment and couldn't help but think, '_If only we went to carnivals more often.' _When was the last time they had gone to a carnival in Rizembool? It must have been long ago…he couldn't really remember anything beyond the taste of the candyfloss and then being spectacularly sick along with Ed and Winry.

Emily pulled him over to one of the stands. "How cute!" She cried and crouched down to look at the various coloured rubber ducks as the floated on the clear water.

"Catch one and it's yours, pretty lady!" The stand owner gushed and waved a crude fishing rod in the air.

"They're cute but I'm useless at these games." She stood up and turned to Al, "What do you want to see next?"

"Uh…" he trailed off and looked down at the floating ducks. A memory of fishing games with Ed flashed through his head. "I'll have a go." He said to the owner.

"Certainly, good sir! Five minutes!" He smiled broadly and handed the rod over. He ceremionously punched a large silver clock. The ticking echoed through their ears but he wasn't deterred.

"Are you good at these, Al?" Emily asked in surprise as Al crouched down and clenched the rod in his hands.

He began to lower the string, "I used to play this sort of thing with nii-san."

There were tiny hooks on the back of each duck. He scanned over each duck, thinking of which colour to pick. Pink? Yellow? Orange? Once he had chosen one he moved the string over towards the victim, the hook swaying gently in the evening breeze. He heard Emily breathe in deeply and hold her breath, as though she was the one causing the swaying. The hook on the end string hit the hook on the duck unsuccessfully. Emily let out a small sigh and Al shifted patiently, determined to get the plastic bird.

"Three minutes!" The owner cried unhelpfully.

Al lowered the string again, this time more steadily. The hooks edged together and with one successful movement the green duck's hook slipped on to the strings own hook. The green duck swung in the air as he lifted it up, the water dripping off it and back into the trough of water.

"We have a winner!" The owner cried and hit a chime to signal the end of the game and a celebratory winner. The noise caused people to flock over towards the stand to see what was happening, as well as gain the man more customers.

Alphonse untangled the hooks, wiped the bottom of the duck dry and handed it to Emily.

"I couldn't take it!" She shook her head profusely.

He laughed, "You can and will. I won it for you." He took her hand and pressed the duck into it. "It's to thank you…for the dance last night."

Her face changed from astonishment to embarrassed happiness. She squeezed his hand, "Thank you."

"Now," Alphonse turned to offer her his arm, "what do you want to do next?"

She happily linked her arm in his.


	9. Twilight memories

**Disclaimer: FMA not mine. Emily mine. That is all. **

**A/N: I heard that in Japanese hotels there are doors on one side of corridor leading to the hotel rooms, and the other side of the corridor was either a blank wall or window to outside. Since FMA was made in Japan I decided to follow the Japanese concept of hotels rathe than the Western 'doors on both sides' concept. That's why Emily's hotel is at it is...**

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Alphonse and Emily were laughing loudly as they walked along the street towards the hotel where she was staying.

"Do you want to come in?" She asked him, picking at the sticky candyfloss. Al's own hands were covered in the pink fluff. He knew that Winry was going to kill him and the rest of the night would be spent picking the nuisance fluff off...he wondered briefly if it would be a nice nuisance, serving as a memory-trigger for the evening they had spent together.

"I'd better go back…" he trailed off. He saw the disappointment in her face and then shrugged, his voice filled with amusement. "Unless there's coffee on offer…?" He couldn't drink coffee but he didn't know what else to suggest.

The light in her face beamed again and she nodded, "Sure, I can order some through room service!"

Al followed her through the foyer, ignoring the suspicious gazes of the night staff, and trailed behind her down the white corridor, the windows on the one side looking out at the hotels elaborate garden. Emily inserted the key into her door and flicked the lights on as she walked in. The room, Alphonse noticed, was not much different from the one Edward and he had in the other hotels. It must be military standard. He did notice a slight difference – Emily's room was a lot tidier than theirs. '_Girls much be neater than boys…' _

Emily dialled for coffee on her phone connection as Al slowly looked around the room, trying not to look as though he was being nosy. He spotted a framed picture on the table of a young girl and boy, arm in arm and smiling brightly at the camera. He leaned forward slightly to look at it more clearly and realized with a shock that the girl with short black hair was Emily. The boy had short brown hair and brilliant blue eyes. They were both tanned, making the photo seem like a holiday snap.

"That's me and Greg."

He jumped and swirled around, "Oh, I'm sorry! I wasn't trying to be nosy!"

Emily shook her head and stepped up to him. Her arms were folded lightly as she looked down at the photo, sadness etched into her face. "I've no idea why I brought it with me. Maybe I thought I'd be lonely."

"Is he your brother?" Al ventured even though he couldn't see any similarities between them.

"No, my boyfriend." She sighed. Al suddenly felt cold as the shock swept through him. A boyfriend? She had a boyfriend?

She continued, "Or, rather, ex-boyfriend. I don't know…" she scratched her head in confusion and swallowed thickly to keep her emotions under control. "I can't really claim to be a widow, can I? So what do I call our relationship?" She laughed meekly. The doorbell rang and she said brightly, "Ah, the coffee is here." She moved towards the door.

Al's head was reeling. _A boyfriend? Ex? Widow? Does that mean her boyfriend…'_

He watched as she put the coffee on another small table and poured milk and sugar into the two steaming cups.

'…_died?'_

There was a burning curiosity in Al and he wanted desperately to ask more, to find out the whole tale. Politeness stopped him, as well as the feeling that he didn't want to make her recall any painful memories. When she had looked at the photo and said that he was her boyfriend she had already looked pained enough.

Despite his resistance on approaching the subject, it was Emily who continued. She nursed the coffee and sat on her bed. "We had been going out for two years-"

"Emily!" He interrupted, causing her to look up at him in astonishment. "You…don't have to tell me if you don't want to." He sat down next to her and placed his hand on top of hers.

She smiled sweetly and sadly. "I want to." She took a deep breath and he listened in silence. "Everyone was expecting us to get married. Two years is a long time to date…especially in the military. But Greg always said that we didn't have to rush, that we had all the time in the world to get married, have kids and grow old together. He was very sentimental and romantic like that…

"I liked the idea of it though. To me, Greg was the only family I had. My parents died shortly after I joined the military – they had been ill for a long time and I joined the military in order to get enough money to send them to a good hospital. After they died I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life. After all, I joined the military for them and I saw it as the only way to get money fast. I threw myself into work because I had basically nothing else to live for. I admit, I went through depression for a while and I even wanted to die in honour in service…" she shook her head quickly to dispel the evil demons forming in her mind, "Anyway, I rose through the ranks quickly and met Greg. He helped me through the depression and life was finally looking up. But…" she trailed off and looked down at the floor as she continued in a quiet voice.

"He went out on patrol one time and never came back. They found the patrol car as well as all of his possessions – his uniform, weapons, identification, everything – all covered in blood. The forensics found that it was his blood as well…" her face was ashen and she swallowed thickly again. Al squeezed her hand in an attempt to comfort her. "The worst death of all is the ones where you don't have the body. If you have the body it's still sad but at least you know where they are. They know that they are safe, in a way. But if you don't have the body you don't know where they are. You don't know what happened to them. It's like they're still a missing person and you can't fully grieve until you see with your own eyes that they are, really, dead."

There was a moment of silence before she went on, "That was a year ago. I nearly fell into depression again but I soon realized that if there was any way Greg was alive – any way at all – then I would have to stay in the military to know for sure. Since I'm not legally tied to him it's most likely that if I left the military they would never contact me on finding him. And so I stayed. But after a year…he won't come back. I know he won't. I can tell." She closed her eyes and a quiet crystal tear rolled down her cheek. "I'm trying to move on now. I have to live my life again rather than let it run on false hopes, always grieving and being alone."

"I'll be here." Alphonse suddenly said, causing her to open her eyes and look at him. The whites of his eyes burned brilliantly in his silver helmet, his voice strong and firm. "I'll always be here for you, Emily. You don't have to be alone. You aren't alone!"

"Thank you, Alphonse." She smiled at him and leaned her head against the cold metal body. He wrapped his arms around her and felt her body jerk as she cried softly; the tears running smoothly down the shining surface of the amour.


	10. Alchemical blooms

**Disclaimer: I have no rights to FMA. Sadly. But on the bright side I do have a right to owning Emily because she is mine! Alllll mine!!! Bwahahahahaahahahahahahaaaaaa (evil laugh) !**

A/N: Some spoilers from the anime here. If you don't want to know skip to the next chapter!!!

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Alphonse noticed that the pollen from the flowers had scattered on to his metal arm and sighed in annoyance. Winry would be annoyed again - they had spent most of the night cleaning off all of the candyfloss. He shifted the bouquet of white flowers in his arms gently, a few petals scattering to the ground.

The brilliant blue sky and spring flowers made the graves look less isolated and abandoned as he and Edward strolled past the gravestones. Their feet crunched against the gravel pavement noisily as they passed grieving and visiting families. The idea of one of their friends being buried here made Al feel a wave of sadness. He wondered briefly if Glacier and her daughter would be here and silently prayed that they would not be. It was always difficult facing the two as he always had a sense of heavy, weighting guilt. Despite her constant reassurances that she did not blame them he couldn't help but feel that he and Ed had deprived Elysia of her father and she, like them, would be growing up without a father.

Edward himself was unusually quiet and subdued as they stood before the grave. Al solemnly laid the flowers down and read the inscribed letters, 'Maes Hughes'. He bowed to the grave and silently wished Hughes happiness and peace. The weight of guilt pressed down on him further. They stood side by side in silent reflection. Edward suddenly sighed and smiled up at Al, trying to appear cheerful although he could see the sadness and guilt in his golden eyes, "Well, shall we go?"

"Hmm." Al nodded and they turned away from the grave. As they headed back the way they had come he spotted a figure dressed in a military uniform, her black hair tied back in a loose ponytail, standing by a wall which listed the names of the serving military officers who had died or went missing in action. Telling Edward he would see him at the hotel, Al jogged lightly over to Emily.

"Oh, hi, Al." She smiled at him and he noticed a bouquet of white lilies in her arms.

"Are you here for…Greg?" He nearly forgot the name but was glad he didn't. Yesterday the time they had spent at the carnival had been truly magical but the evening…the memory flashed through his head and he remembered his promise to her, '_I'll always be here for you, Emily. You don't have to be alone. You aren't alone!'_

'_And I'll stand by that,' _he vowed. '_I'll protect her and be her friend and be by her for as long as she wants me to be.' _Emily's confession of depression and the events of her life over the last four years had left him with an uneasy feeling when he had left her later that evening. As his brother and Winry slept he had thought the moment over in his mind and had came to the realization that Emily probably needed a friend more than romantic interest. He hadn't realized just how hard he had fallen for her until that moment. The realization had sent him on cloud nine – his first love! The idea of it made him want to shout it out from the rooftops, but the realism of the situation had sent him back down to Amestris with a resounding _thud _once more.

And so he had vowed that, unless she herself said that she wanted to take their friendship further, he would never speak of it to anyone. Not even his brother.

"Yes," Emily responded to his question. "In the East there aren't any cemetaries and no place to really honour the dead. I don't know when I'll next be in Central so I thought I would visit today."

"You're leaving?" It was inevitable and Al knew that this fairytale, this dream, could not last forever. Eventually he and Ed would go back to their journey of looking for the Philosopher's Stone after they stayed in Risembool for the rest of the week to see Granny Pinako, and Emily would go back to the East to continue her duty. Even though he knew this he could not help feeling disappointed and wishing that the time they had together would last longer. Maybe they would meet again, somehow keep in contact…but he and Ed moved unpredictably so there could be no guarantee of that.

She nodded. "I have another two weeks off but I thought I should return home. With everything going back to it's regular routine – the Colonel and Lieutenant Hawkeye going to work and you, Ed and Winry leaving – there's nothing really to keep me here…"

A silence fell on the couple. Al looked up at the grey memorial and read the engraved names on the first half, the rest of the wall empty and waiting patiently and endlessly for more names to be added. He didn't know when they would next be in Central either. The lives they had seemed to always be on the brink of existence, as though they were lying on a silvery spider web and the delicate threads could snap at any moment. He felt a sudden urge to do something, give something, to the fallen listed soldiers as well as any who may later become involved with the two brothers during their journey.

Al's sudden question made Emily jump. "What were Greg's favourite flowers?"

"Lilies." She replied and hugged the lilies in her own arms. "White lilies."

"Alright!" Al replied and knelt on the hard grey ground to press the soft white chalk against it. A buzz of excitement and thrill went through him as his mind pictured the alchemical circle in his head, the feeling of trepidation and anticipation causing him to become nervous and excited simultaneously. He loved that feeling. He wondered if he would ever get tired of it.

"Al, what are you – " Emily followed him dart over to the greenery as he snatched up a few blades of grass and followed him back to the memorial again. "-doing?" She finished, completely confused.

"Watch!" His voice was filled with teasing and excitement. He knelt down to the circle again, placed the handful of grass on top and pressed his hands against it, feeling the flow of energy from him going into the circle. There was dazzling white flash, causing Emily to cover her eyes and attracting the gaze of onlookers. When she opened her eyes again she gasped in shock and delight at the sight of the bouquet of lilies, nearly as tall as her. They were a brilliant snow white, the green leaves glistening in the golden sunshine and the orange tips appearing soft and slender.

"It's," she stared, her mouth half open in astonishment. "It's beautiful."

Al nodded and was about to say something to her before he was interrupted by a shout of, "Al! Emily!" as Winry came towards them, carrying her own bouquet of flowers.

"Winry!" Al waved at her. "Are you here to visit Brigadier General Hughes' grave?"

"Yes, sorry I couldn't get up to go with you guys." She replied, looking slightly embarrassed. "Wow! What beautiful lilies!"

"Al…made them?" Emily said, uncertain of how to describe what she had witnessed. She had never seen alchemy like that before.

Winry grinned, "They're wonderful! Oh, Al, I just remembered, Ed is waiting for you. I think you'd better hurry, he seemed impatient."

"Oh!" He became flustered and bowed hurriedly to Emily. "I completely forgot! I'll see you again soon, Emily. See you later, Winry."

"See you!" Winry replied cheerfully and Emily bowed and smiled in reply. The two girls watched Al's jogging retreating back before Winry abruptly turned to Emily and asked, "Emily, are you free this week?"

"Eh?" Emily blinked in confusion at the sudden question whereas Winry beamed from ear to devious ear.

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Edward and Alphonse waited impatiently for Winry to meet them at the bustling Central Train Station later that afternoon.

"Where _is _she?!" Ed asked for the hundredth time. His black booted foot tapped impatiently and his golden eyes glared at the silver clock. The train whistled behind them, pouring steam and the scent of coal into the station. The porters dressed in blue helped the latest travellers in to the carriages, silently and gently fighting over the luggage between themselves in order to get a chance of being tipped. Stern business men, excited children and anxious mothers swarmed around the brothers. Ed and Al strained their heads, trying to filter out the blonde Winry from the bustling crowd.

"She did say she had some last minute things to do…" Alphonse trailed off, the impatience and anxiety over missing their train to Risembool creeping into his voice. He was partly eager to leave Central and partly loathe to leave it. He hadn't been able to say goodbye to Emily properly and he doubted that he would ever see her again. He shouldn't have left so abruptly, he chided himself, he should have made Edward wait so that he and Emily could have said goodbye. But he hadn't even uttered the right farewell, just said 'See you soon' and ran away. He felt like kicking himself.

"Probably couldn't find her spanner." Edward muttered bitterly and folded his arm, breaking Al's train of thoughts.

"Hmm." Alphonse agreed partly, still distracted. "I hope she gets here soon – ah! There she is!" He began to wave to catch her eye and show where they were. Winry spotted him and beamed brightly as she waved back. She seemed to turn her head to talk to someone but he couldn't see who. "I think someone's with her?"

Ed looked up at his brother in surprise and squinted through the crowd as though he could see her as well even though it was obvious he was too short to spot her. "Who is it?"

"I don't know…" he trailed off as Winry reached them.

"Sorry we're late! We tried to get here as fast as we could!" Winry breathed heavily as though she had indeed been hurrying. Her brown suitcase hung by her side which Edward took from her.

"Well, at least you're here now." He replied. He suddenly noticed her companion and exclaimed, "Emily!"

Alphonse's head jerked up and he, too, noticed the black haired girl behind Winry who was also holding a small suitcase. She smiled at Ed shyly, "Uh, hi, Ed."

"I invited her!" Winry declared and linked her arm in Emily's. "I wanted her to see Risembool. And since she had the time off anyway it seemed like the perfect opportunity to invite her."

"You're coming with us?" Ed asked her, not able to hide his surprise. Emily nodded silently as the train's final whistle blew and the porters shouted loudly to urge the last few customers on to the train. Ed snapped from being surpised to anxiety. "Argh, we're going to miss it if we don't hurry!" He grabbed Winry's hand with his free hand and hurried her towards the train.

Alphonse picked up their own suitcase and quickly said to Emily, "Come on, we don't want to miss it!"

"You're…" she hesitated. "You're okay with me coming with you?"

"Of course." Al replied sincerely, relieved that they would be able to spend more time together. "I'm actually really happy that you will be there with us." He took her hand and squeezed it gently.

"Hey, loverbirds! Hurry up already!" Edward's loud, echoing voice cut through the romantic scene like a swift dagger as he leaned out of the window.

"Al-right!" Al called and ran towards the train as it slowly inched away. A smiling Emily hurried to catch up with him as well as keep a hold on her suitcase. He stepped on to the train confidently then turned quickly to pull Emily up. The train began to pick up speed and the people and buildings of Central whipped past and Al stood in the corridor of the carriage with Emily in his arms.

It was true, he thought as he looked down into her bright green eyes. He was really glad that she was here with him and going to Risembool, his hometown.


	11. Black lies and white lies

**Disclaimer: I never created FMA. Wish I did, but I didn't. All credit goes to Hiromu Arakawa for coming up with the main character (and minor) and main storyline. BUT EMILY IS ALL MIIIINE! MWAHAHA! Ahem. Yes.**

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The journey had begun in the bright afternoon but slowly the sun slipped beneath its covers and the silent silver moon rose gracefully. The light in the carriages dimmed then began to glow softly as the crystal lights flickered on. Outside the world was bathed in silver light but Alphonse could easily see his reflection in the glass. Opposite him on a facing seat sat Edward and Winry, snuggled underneath Ed's red coat and Winry's head lightly resting against his shoulder. They were both sound asleep. Sitting next to Al, Emily was also fast asleep, her own head leaning lightly against his arm. He had worried at first, wondering if the cold metal would shock her awake. But she had kept on sleeping, safe in dreamland, as the train slid through the night silently like an ethereal puffing ghost.

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During the early hours of the morning the train arrived at its final stop in Risembool. The four had clamoured out sleepily, Al being the only one fully awake, and stumbled onto the dark platform of the town station. The light in the porter's office glowed brightly but no-one came to meet them. He was most likely asleep, as he always was.

Al quietly encouraged his sleep-walking companions down the dusty silver road towards the Rockbell house. Edward began to slowly wake up himself, being used as he was to late nights and unpredictable sleeping patterns. The girls lagged behind, rubbing their eyes, drooping slightly and covering large and loud yawns behind their hands. The boys carried the suitcases and strolled behind them, admiring the spectacular night view of the glowing stars above them as well as making sure that their companions did not fall face first asleep on the ground.

Ahead of them an orange light beamed from the Rockbell house. Granny Pinako had known that they would be arriving late and Al was immensely grateful for the added guidance - he often wondered how long it would take for him and Ed to forget the road back. Despite his worries their feet lead them back as though they had been born to walk that route and it was as familiar to them as their own shoes. Winry also perked up on seeing the light in her house on, "Aaah! We're nearly home!"

Her step quickened and Emily hurried as well. "Oi! Winry, slow down!" Edward complained loudly, not worrying if anyone heard them as they were in a deserted part of the small country village. But his voice still cut through the stillness and solitude of the dawn air like a knife. He shifted the weight of the suitcases in his hands and jogged lightly to keep up with them. Al followed closely behind them.

"Home sweet home!" Winry declared as she stamped up the familiar, wooden steps and opened the door. Den lifted his head sleepily and barked in delight at the return of the three people he knew so well. "Shh, shh, Den! We mustn't wake Grandma!" She patted him softly and rubbed his chin. He whimpered slightly, as though understanding her words and then went to Ed and Al, his tail wagging profusely.

As the boys patted him Winry directed Emily up the stairs to the guest room. "You'll have to share with Ed and Al, I'm afraid."

"That's fine! Really!" Emily replied and yawned slightly. "Sorry." She said, embarrassed.

Winry grinned, "It's fine, you'd better head up now to grab the bed you want before those two beat you to it! Goodnight, Emily!"

"Goodnight!" She called and patted Den who sniffed at her hand anxiously and licked it.

"'Night!" The Elric brothers replied. Ed shortly followed her up the stairs to crash asleep and Winry went to her own room as well.

Al was left alone in the bright kitchen. He bent down and scratched Den behind the ears before the old dog got bored and decided to go to sleep as well. Al sat at the kitchen table, listening to the sounds of the clock tick and chime the next hour. The sound of Den's soft breathing and occasional whimper of his dreams filled the silence of the room.

He wondered how long it would be until sunrise…the nights seemed to stretch on the longer he remained in that body. It was during the nights that he dwelled on the past; the memories served to build up his determination to get his body back.

Meanwhile he waited impatiently not to achieve their goal and return to their original bodies, but for the sunrise and to show Emily his hometown of Risembool.

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"So that's where you went to school?" Emily, refreshed by her long sleep, pointed at a white building she and Al walked past. The bright moon had given way to an even brighter sun. It was a perfect summer day in Risembool – the fields were green, the harvest was healthy, the air was sweet with the scent of flowers and wheat. Occasionally a chicken fluttered past, causing Emily the city girl to laugh and point in delight. They waited patiently at a crossing for the white fluffy sheep to pass by along with herding and calling farmers.

A lamb nuzzled Emily's hand, causing her to giggle and pat its head gently and stroke his long felty ears. The lamb called softly and then gambolled onwards to follow his mates. "It must have been pretty amazing to grow up here." She mused and watched the retreating backs of the sheep and farmers.

"Not really." Al replied and then stammered quickly, "I-I mean, Ed and I didn't really know anything different, you know? We were surprised at the contrast when we went to Central. It was the first time we had ever been in a city, really."

"I know what you mean! I was brought up in the East so I was amazed at the city-life. Even though the East can be counted as being a city, it's more of a town compared to Central." She laughed and stepped up on to a wall, her arms outstretched as she balanced and walked along. "It's quite magical here!"

Al looked up at her happily, glad that she was having fun and was enjoying being in Risembool like he was. No matter how much Ed and he saw or explored it could never compare to being at home. There _was _no place like home. Even though they had burned down their house to prevent themselves from looking back sometimes he still longed to return to Risembool and see everything again, the familiar sounds and sights. Everything.

Emily looked around excitedly, drinking in all of the countryside sights and loving everything she saw. "Where is your house?" She asked, knowing that Edward and Al had grown up here but were not relatives of Winry.

"My…house?" He repeated slowly, slightly startled that she had brought up a subject he had been pondering over.

"Hmm!" She nodded and jumped down from the wall.

"Well," Al said quietly. "I suppose…I could show you. On the way I'll have to explain something though…"

Al had never before told the Elric brothers story without running it past Edward first. He knew that Ed had rarely told anyone about their past – a few of their closest military companions, Winry, Granny Pinako…that was about it. It had become a silent pact to not tell anyone about their past without getting approval from the other brother first. Like Ed when he told their tale of woe, Al didn't detail everything of their life explicity to Emily – there were some things he didn't want her to know. He simply explained their mothers death, the transmutation and the act of burning down their house. The truth of the story was covered in lies and he hated himself for lying to her – but how could he make sure the brothers were protected as well as Emily herself? The less she knew the better.

"So you burnt down your house in exchange for committing the greatest alchemy sin? As a way of repentance? And then Edward joined the military to try and make up for that and use his skills for good?" The lies Emily repeated stung him sharply and for once he was glad he didn't have a face easy to read, otherwise she would see right through him.

"Hmm." He nodded, looking down at the ever familiar track as they walked up to the burnt building.

"That's…" she lost her voice and Al glanced at her. Her face was stony white and her eyes were bright. "And this is where you lived?"

They stood on top of the hill, gazing across the ruined, black, shell of a house. The tree, once so majestic and full of life, was a black smouldering log. Its leaves would never grow again and Al felt regret that another living thing had been sacrificed, even though it was only a tree. He remembered the flicker of the orange and red flames on the end of the stick, the way Edward had thrown it into the burning inferno and how they had turned their backs on it, their worldly possessions in one simple suitcase.

"That's…" Emily's voice croaked and to Al's surprise her eyes filled with tears as she frantically took in the scene before her. "That's too sad. You had to give up everything because of one mistake?"

"It was the greatest crime to commit in alchemy." Al told her uncertainly, astonished by her sudden emotion. "Human transmutation-"

"But you were only children!" She interrupted him sharply. "You were only children who wanted their mother back! Why should you have to pay so much in an attempt to get your mother back? What's wrong with that? What's wrong with wanting to see your loved one again?"

"Equivalent exchange…"

"If equivalent exchange means sacrificing all this then it isn't fair! It's not fair at all!" The tears rolled down her cheeks, her eyes were bright and filled with sadness and anger. "It doesn't exist if you gave all of this and weren't able to get anything back!"

"Emily…" he trailed off as she fell silent and wiped the tears away.

"Sorry." She muttered quietly after a pause. "I didn't mean to get that upset. It just…doesn't seem fair at all."

"Nii-san and I are trying to make up for what we did." Al lead her to the wall and they sat down together. "We have a goal we are aiming for."

"So you're giving more to get your mother back." She added bitterly.

"No." He said sharply, causing her to look up in surprise. "This time we're trying to take something we want. It is influenced by this, but we're determined to get what we set out to do."

She smiled. "I hope you get it. One day."

"We will." He said confidently, his eyes twinkling. "We definitely will."


	12. All laid bare

**Disclaimer: I don't own FMA. Simple.**

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The days in Risembool passed pleasantly. There were days were they had picnics, fished next to the river, explored forgotten areas of the town, gathered at Granny Pinako's in the evening and gazed at the stars in the night.

Al treasured every moment he spent with Emily. He met each rising sunrise with a mixture of excitement and dread. He wondered what they would do today, causing the excitement, and yet he knew that another sunrise was gone so meaning that the days with Emily were drawing to a close, causing the dread. What was worse was that he still didn't know what Emily thought of him.

But the sun kept on setting and rising and the days went by. On the evening before they were due to return to Central Al and Emily sat on the floor of the balcony of the Rockbell's house, gazing at the stars.

"Oh, look! The Big Dipper!" Emily cried excitedly and pointed it out to him in the dark, diamond filled sky.

"You're really good at pointing them out." Al commented.

"Thanks," she brushed a stray hair back behind her ear, "My father and I used to do this." There was a note of sentimentality in her voice as she reflected on the memory. For a moment Al felt a pang of regret, wishing that he hadn't made her recall a painful memory. He watched her closely, looking for signs of grief, but could find none. She looked serene and happy, the white moonlight highlighting her beauty and making her, he thought, look like she was some kind of ethereal creature come from another world to tease him and then fly away far out of reach.

He shook his head gently, trying to get rid of those embarrassing and dispiriting thoughts, and gazed up at the starlit sky again. It was calm, from what he could tell. The trees were still, the houses in the distance glowed within, the water shone silver from the moon. It was a beautiful night.

"It's a beautiful night."

He jumped, wondering if he had said it out loud. Emily smiled at him, her eyes sparkling, "Don't you think?"

"Hmm." He nodded and leaned against the banister, his arms folded. "It is." He felt a quiver of happiness that they had been thinking the same thing.

Emily joined him, her long, slender arms folded and leaning against the wooden banister. They were silent before she sighed and rested her chin on her arms. "Ahhh, I don't want to leave tomorrow!"

"Me neither." Al chuckled.

Emily looked out over Risembool, the sight of the town warming her heart. She felt truly comfortable here. "I wonder if I can come back."

"Winry and Granny Pinako would be happy for you to come back!" The two women had practically adopted Emily into the family with open arms and Al knew that they would be sad to see her go.

"You think?"

"Definitely."

She smiled the smile that made him want to melt. "I hope so."

A silence fell on them once more before Emily spoke again. "I had fun this week. Really. It's been a while since I laughed so much. It was great. I'll miss everyone. Granny Pinako and Winry and Edward and…" she straightened up and looked him straight in the eye. "And you, Al."

Al straightened up too and shifted uncomfortably. "Yeah…I'll miss you too. I had fun this week too. But we'll probably see each other again since nii-san is in the military."

"'Probably'." There was a hint of bitter laughter in her voice as she repeated that word. "I don't want 'probably', Al. I want definitely." Her fists clenched, her eyes flashed brightly. "I definitely want to see you again. I really do."

"Emily…" He stepped forward but she rushed on.

"I don't know why I feel so…desperate and upset at the idea of us leaving tomorrow and not seeing eachother until God knows when. But what I do know is that this week, the last two weeks, have been the best of my life. Going to the ball, coming here to Risembool, meeting you…I don't want to lose this magic. I don't want to lose this feeling I have right now. I don't want to go back to the way things were before. I want to stay here, I want to stay with you. Anywhere you go, I want to go too, because…because…" Small silver tears ran down her cheeks.

"Emily-" he wrapped one arm around her to calm her down, to comfort her.

She pushed him away, "Because I love you."

He stared at her in shock. Her words resonated through his body. "W-what?"

"I love you." She repeated again, her hands gripping his, the tears still sliding down her face. "I love you and I don't want to leave you-!" she trailed off and looked down at her feet. "I'm sorry." She mumbled. "You don't need this from me. Sorry." Her hands withdrew, her feet turned away and she began to withdraw from him.

"No," a sudden panic seized him. Was he going to lose her? After this? She…loved him? She loved _him, _a walking suit of armour? An empty suit of armour? She was able to love someone she hadn't really seen? But now she was leaving him…he didn't want that. He didn't want to lose her. He didn't want to leave her either. "Wait, Emily!" He grabbed her arm and spun her around, pulling her close to him, suddenly wishing that he had a body to feel her warmth. "Don't go."

"Al…"

"I don't want to leave you, either." He told her, wiping the tears from her eyes softly. "I don't want us to leave tomorrow, either. I don't want…to lose you." He suddenly realized then that his feelings for her, his crush, had changed. "I-I love you." He whispered in a quiet, amazed voice. "I love you, too." He stroked her hair away from her eyes. "Really."

A watery smile lit up her face and she leant her head against his chest. "Al…"

He kept his arms around her and they stood on the balcony, in the star filled night.

* * *

The train journey back had been quiet and subdued. Emily leant her head against Al, much like on the journey towards Risembool. They hadn't mentioned what had been said the night before. The reality was that, even though they wanted to be together, it wouldn't be possible and Al knew why and what could be done to make it possible – they had two separate journeys and the only way to be together, truthfully, was if Al got his body back. Once he had achieved that, they could be together. Until then…it simply was not possible.

Another thought plagued him. Emily had never mentioned the fact he wore armour all the time, not after her initial question and he had told her it was for training. She hadn't even mentioned it after last night. He thought it was strange and wondered why she hadn't asked him to remove his helmet, at least, to look at his face. A slight panicked thought had made him wonder if she had guessed somehow. But he couldn't think of anything that may have given her a clue about the truth. His words when he told her his past were careful and measured. He hadn't wanted to tell her too much in case she became a target for the Homunculi. And besides, Emily knew nothing about alchemy.

And yet, her unquestioning acceptance of the armour worried him. He knew that one day she would ask and what would he say then? He had lied to her and guilt bit at him like an annoying mosquito. He didn't know what he would say when that day came.

The familiar grey buildings whipped past as they approached Central. Emily lifted her head but clenched his hand. Opposite them, Edward was sleeping and drool spilled out of his mouth slightly. As the train came to a stop and the bored voice of the speakers came to life to announce the last stop, Edward woke up and the three of them silently rose and disembarked. Al felt a sense of dread, knowing the time for departure was coming soon. Emily was going to the military headquarters before leaving for the East later in the afternoon; he and Edward were going to Central Library to look at more documents concerning the stone. Who knew when they would see each other again?

The train station was crowded as usual and Al was distracted with his thoughts. He hadn't noticed that he was walking straight into a pile of boxes up to knee height. He crashed into them and fell over, bewildered. He realized with panic that his helmet was coming off and he quickly grabbed it before shoving it back on.

"Oi! Watch where you're going, mate!" An angry voice bellowed out.

"Sorry! Sorry!" Al bowed and hurriedly stacked up the boxes. Edward said nothing, silently knowing what was distracting his younger brother and helped him. He suddenly wondered where Emily was and looked behind him. He saw the expression on her face and, in that split second, knew that she knew. "Al," Ed said awkwardly to his brother.

"What is it, nii-san?" Al said, flustered.

"I think that…" he swallowed and that same feeling of twisted anxiety whenever someone discovered the truth about his younger brother swept through his stomach. He suddenly feared for Al. "I think that you should talk to Emily."

"What?" Al stopped and looked back to Emily. He saw her face. "Oh. Oh…."

She was staring at Al, her face ashen white and her green eyes wide and confused. Her mouth was slightly open but it was her eyes, her bright, bewildered and staring eyes, which scared Al. "W-what?" She whispered in the busy Central station. Her voice was quiet but he could hear every word as though they were clear, crystal rain drops dripping into his own ear. "Al…? What is…what…? You're…emp-"

"Emily!" He bolted up, causing her to jump. He suddenly didn't want her to say the word out loud. "I think we should go outside."

"Al," Ed touched his arm and jerked his head to a quiet corner. "We should all talk over there."

Al felt a huge wave of gratitude to his older brother, but he knew that this was one thing he would have to explain on his own. "I'll talk to her. It's okay."

Edward frowned, looked back and forth between Emily and Al, sighed and nodded. "Fine. I'll, uh, wait outside, okay?" He picked up their suitcases and disappeared into the crowd.

He was silently thankful to his understanding older brother. Straightening his body he stepped towards Emily and took her hand. She quickly pulled it away, not looking at him. He looked down at her in despair and confusion. Was this it? Was this the end of everything?

"We should talk…" He trailed off.

"Yes." She replied quietly and walked towards the dark, empty and secluded corner. She leaned against a wall, still silent.

"I, uh…" he stopped. He tried again. "I uh…" He didn't know how to begin.

"How long?" She asked him, her face down at the ground. "How long have you been…?"

"An empty suit of armour?" He suggested, unable to keep the bitterness out of his voice.

She swallowed, paused and then nodded.

"Since the night we transmuted our mother. I was 'taken' and nii-san lost his leg. He then sacrificed his arm to bring me back, but he could only put my soul on a suit of armour which was in the room at the time."

She shuddered slightly. "Why?"

He was shocked by her question. "What?"

She sniffed, her fingers dug in to her palms and she suddenly snapped. Anger and grief were etched across her face as she shouted, "_Why didn't you tell me_?"

The station was noisy enough to cover her angry outburst. Passersby glanced at them, but hurried on, too busy themselves to take part in other peoples problems.

Al held up his hands, "I-"

She was seething. "Why didn't you tell me the _truth? _Why did you lie and say you were wearing it for _training? _I never questioned it because I respected your decision and commitment! Why didn't tell me the truth about that night? _Why? _Don't you trust me? Did you expect me to report you and your brother to the military? I don't know much about alchemy but I do know that it is…" her voiced lowered, "illegal."

Her words cut him to the core. He was shaking. "It's not…like that."

"Then what is it '_like'?" _

"_I didn't want to put you in any danger!" _Al burst out. Emily stopped and stared at her. He grabbed her arms. "It's not that I don't trust you – I do trust you! I just didn't want you to be targeted by anyone following us. I didn't want to get you involved. The less you know the better!"

She searched his face questioningly. "Al, how dangerous is this journey? Tell me. Tell me everything. The truth. Please."

He hesitated.

And then told her everything.

Emily had listened in silence as Al explained it all. From his father and alchemy, to his mothers illness and death, to meeting Izumi-sensei, to the transmutation and then the journey to Central and the sordid events of their journey.

When he had reached the end of their extraordinary journey he was exhausted. He felt mentally drained and mildly surprised at everything he and Edward had achieved, how much they had gone through.

"Please, don't be angry." He begged her at the end. He had realized that he may lose her at that moment, for not telling her the truth from the beginning.

She took his hand and smoothed it with her hand. "I'm only angry because you didn't tell me the truth." She closed her eyes and rested her head against his hand.

"I'm sorry. I didn't want you to become a target for the Homunculi or for them to make a connection between us and you."

"I know." She replied quietly. "I know."

"When I get nii-san's body back, and mine as well, we won't have to worry anymore. I can come back and see you. But until then-"

"I know." She interrupted him. "You have to keep going. I'm not saying that because I know you'll go even if I object – now that I know the truth I want you to keep going. I don't want you to look back, Al. I want to see the day when you get your body back and I want to see," she smiled, "I want to see your face smiling back at me. I really do. You can't give up. If I knew more about alchemy then I could help you…but I don't know anything. If I could sacrifice anything – anything, even our memories together – I would do it! There are people waiting for the day when you will get your body back – you and Edward." She kissed his hands. "I'll be waiting for you, too, Al.. Promise me you'll come back to me, when your journey is finished."

"I promise." He hugged her, grateful that she was with him. "I will come back. Will you wait?"

"Yes!" She smiled brightly at him. "I'll wait for you."


	13. Attention!

**STOP!**

For those of you who have not seen the anime or the movie I suggest you do so before continuing as the rest of the fanfic strongly follows the ideas set by the anime and is a SPOILER!!!

If you don't care, are eager to see the end or have seen the anime anyway then please! Continue! (laugh)


	14. Moments lost

**Disclaimer: I did not come up with FMA and have, frankly, zero rights to it. BUT THAT DOESN'T STOP ME FROM WRITING FANFICS ABOUT IT! (Mad cackling...)**

* * *

Emily stepped outside of her front door and stretched her arms high above her head, drinking in the bright sunshine of spring. The cherry blossoms bloomed pink and white, scattering their petals across the lawn she had mowed last week. She fluffed up her own newly cut short hair. The length had caused her hair to become wavy. She was still getting used to it and wondered briefly if Al would like it.

She sighed and lifted her head to the azure blue sky. It had been a year since she and Al had returned, in a way, to their separate lives. It had been a year since she had learned the truth about Ed and Al. A full uneventful year.

'_Or maybe not so uneventful,' _she thought, admiring the garden she had worked so hard at. She had transferred to Central a few months after she and Al had departed and shortly after that had moved into a house of her own in a quiet suburb. She still kept one room spare, complete with bed and sheets, in case Al or his brother, or Winry (as she was prone to do) arrived unannounced. She had kept in contact with Winry and was grateful that she had some form of connection to Al. Winry barely heard anything from the Elrics either but it was uplifting when she happened to know _something. _The two of them swapped any information they happened to know. Since Emily was in the military you would think that she would know a lot, but the Elrics were always on the move and there were only rumours, and rumours could never be fully trusted.

She stretched again, wondering what Alphonse and Edward were doing now. Maybe eating. Or sleeping. Rather, Edward would be sleeping. She grinned at the thought.

She was about to return inside when a clear voice cut through the spring stillness. "Emily!"

"Winry!" Emily waved at her and ran down to the bottom of the garden and opened the freshly painted wooden gate. She hugged the blonde who laughed delightedly. "How are you?" Her friend didn't look any different at all.

"I'm fine, I'm fine! I like the hair." Winry grinned at her. "What about you?"

"I'm great, really." Emily spotted a young boy standing behind her. She felt as though she should know him, felt a twinge of recognition, but she couldn't place him. That short golden brown hair…those brown eyes…why was he so familiar and yet not familiar? "Hi, I'm Emily."

"Hello." He was very polite, bowing slightly to her. The action only confused and intrigued her more. "My name is Alphonse Elric."

A thunderbolt of shock struck her. She tightened her grip on Winry's arm and stared at him. "Alphonse? But…" That was impossible! The boy must have been no older than twelve but Alphonse, _her _Alphonse, was fourteen.

"Emily," Winry said softly and sadly. "He is Alphonse Elric."

"You got…your body back?" Emily swallowed thickly, trying to keep her tears down. He hesitated and nodded slowly. At last, after one long year, at long last, he had come back to her. "Al!" She dashed to him and hugged him tightly. "Al!"

"Uh…" He blushed furiously. She paused and gently let him go. "Sorry." he avoided her gaze, still burning red.

"Al? What's wrong? Don't you…remember me?" The question sounded ludicrous to her own ears. How could he have possibly forgotten?

"Emily." Winry placed a comforting hand on her friends shoulder, who stared at her in confusion. "We have some explaining to do…"

* * *

They sat in Emily's kitchen at the round oak table. She dumbly remembered how she had decorated the room in a soft shade of cream and daydreamed about sitting with Al at that very table drinking tea. She had decorated most of her house with him on her mind. Hell, she had even got a cat shaped cookie jar thinking how much he would love it and laugh when he saw it.

And he had grinned at it and commented politely, "I like your cookie jar!"

"I-" she stopped and then smiled as she placed the tea and cookies on the table. "Thank you." She had almost said, '_I knew you would.' _

Now after listening to the long and confusing story – there were many holes in it as most of what Winry knew came from a girl called Rose and since Al couldn't remember anything there were some very confusing unanswered questions – Emily sat in silence, her hands pressed hard against her cup as though she was going to break it between her hands and then collapse in grief. She was definitely on the verge of doing that.

"You don't remember anything? Anything at all?" She had asked Al slowly, careful to keep her voice light and carefree. She didn't want to worry him, and, if he was the same Al, she knew it would worry him if someone was distressed or appeared distressed.

"I don't remember anything after Mother's transmutation." He replied.

"Colonel Mustang and Major Armstrong, I mean, Mr Armstrong," Winry hurriedly said since Alex Louis Armstrong had recently left the military, "think that since Al lost his body when he was twelve, he returned to his body at the age of twelve since a body cannot grow without its soul. They also think he gave up his memory and the time he spent with Ed in return for his body and Ed coming back to life. Equivalent exchange."

"Edward is…okay?" Emily asked vaguely.

Winry hesitated and then smiled sadly, "We don't know. Rose said that when Ed first died he came back through what seemed to a 'door'. We think that maybe he went across that door again. There might be a world on the other side of the door. If there is, Edward is there."

"He's not dead." Alphonse suddenly said and Emily thought for a moment that he was his old self again – that bright, burning determination was still there. "I know he's still alive. And I'll find him – I won't give up."

The words seemed like an echo of the past and she smiled sadly. "Yes. You can't give up. You have to keep going. If I knew alchemy I would help but I don't know anyth-" She stopped and her face crumpled. Unshed tears rushed to her face as the words from one year ago echoed in her mind. She saw his face then, when he was still a suit of armour. She felt his metallice arms around her. _"Promise me you'll come back to me, when your journey is finished._"

He had come back to her and yet it was meaningless. He had forgotten. He had forgotten everything.

She let go of her cup and buried her face in her hands as her shoulders shook violently. The tears gushed out and she wept: she wept with relief that he had his body back; she wept with grief that Edward might be dead and she wouldn't see her friend again; she wept with sorrow that Al had forgotten their moments together and her love for him; she wept for so much that was lost and so little that was gained.

"Al…do you think you could put the suitcases upstairs?" Winry asked gently. He had looked at her in confusion, then at the weeping woman he thought he must have met before but couldn't remember, nodded and swiftly left.

"Emily." Winry hugged her. "They'll find a way to get it all back. Ed will come back and Al will his memories back. You can count on that."

"But you don't know that." Emily shook her head. "He will never remember!"

"He will." Winry replied firmly, her own blue eyes filling with tears. "We thought they would never get his body back and they have. They can make miracles happen. They will find a solution."

Emily was silent. She wiped her nose and eyes and straightened up. "I know…I know that they'll find something, and that Edward isn't really gone. We would know if he was."

"Yes. We would." Winry smiled reassuringly.

"I should be happy! I told him once," she wiped her eyes again. "I told him that if I had to give up our memories together for him to get back his body, I would. I would do it without hesitation. And that's what happened, hasn't it? It's not that different from what I said, is it? I should be happy," she repeated through her tears, "As long as he is happy that is what's important. At least they achieved what they set out to do. At least he got his body back. And yet…and so…" The tears fell again. "So why am I crying?" She pleaded to Winry in desperation, in search of an answer. "Why am I crying like this?"

"Oh, Emily." She said softly. "I know what you mean." Winry squeezed her hard. "I know exactly what you mean."

Outside the kitchen door Alphonse hid in the shadows. He knew then that the black haired woman had loved him once, maybe still did, and wondered if he had loved her.


	15. All I ask of you

**Disclaimer: I hold no rights to FMA. ****Lyrics from Phantom of the Opera 'All I ask of you.' I have no rights to that either!!!**

**I had just finished watcing the Phantom of the Opera movie and when I was writing the song kept going round and round in my head...**

* * *

Winry and Al stayed with Emily for the remaining week. She had insisted, saying that she had got a hard earned vacation and that she would only be bored if they left. So they stayed. She tried to act naturally around Al, treating him as a friend rather than as the man she had fallen in love with.

She had wondered if she would fall _out _of love with him if he stayed the week, but even though he had forgotten their past and looked completely different his mannerisms and behaviour were still the same and she was just as much in love with him as before. Maybe she was even more in love with him since every time he smiled she thought she would soar. She had initially blushed uncontrollably when he had first smiled at her but now she was getting more used to it. She had even fretted at one point what would happen if he found out she was in love in him – a nineteen year old (as she was one year older) in love with a twelve year old? It sounded so weird and ridiculous!

Winry was late coming home one night – she had gone to do some automail shopping – and Emily and Al were sat alone in the kitchen at the round table opposite eachother. The radio hissed softly, playing old tunes. Outside the clouds were dark and the stars were hidden from view.

"I hope it doesn't rain while Winry is out." Emily murmured and he silently nodded in response. The radio filled the silence of the kitchen.

'_No more talk of darkness, forget these wide-eyed fears. I'm here, nothing can harm you…'_

"This song…" Al said suddenly, causing her to jump. He looked up at her with wide, bright eyes. "There was a party at the townhall a few weeks ago. Everyone was dancing to this song."

"Do you like dancing?" She smiled.

"I-I don't know how to dance." He twisted his hands uncomfortably.

'_I'm here with you, beside you, to guard you and to guide you.'_

"Want me to teach you? You won't embarrassed at the next party then."

He blushed furiously. "Uh, uh, sure."

She instructed him as they stood in the middle of the room. "One hand here and the other here. That's it." She squeezed his hand, "No need to be nervous! Now! Right foot back – that's it. And one, two, three," she repeated herself as her voice grew quieter until there was only silence and they danced across the kitchen to the song.

'

"Emily?" Al's young boyish voice cut through her memories like a knife through soft, warm butter. She opened her eyes, briefly expecting to see the flash of metal armour again, only to gaze down at a brown haired boy. "Did we…dance like this before?"

The sudden question stunned her and she gripped his hands tightly. "Do you – do you remember?"

"Not…really…it seems familiar…like when I see someone, or a building or a room, I get…déjà vu or something…" He explained hesitantly.

It was like amnesia, she thought. The environment triggers emotions but the person can't really explain it.

"Well, we did dance. At a military ball about a year ago." The last year seemed like a lifetime ago.

"How did we meet?"

She laughed slightly, "You helped me catch a bad guy. Unintentionally, though. You were just a passerby and the guy ran straight into you and you both fell over."

He listened intently as she told him the past. "Really?"

"Yup!"

"Cool." His childish face lit up. "I caught a bad guy!"

She laughed at his expression of pride. He grinned at her but his smile slowly faded. They had stopped dancing and were standing in the middle of the room. The song changed to a different one. She tilted her head, studying his expression. "What's wrong?"

"Were we-were we a c-c-c-c-couple?" The question caused him to blush furiously and stammer. He immediately regretted asking it, feeling like an idiot.

"I suppose we were." She hadn't really thought about it, she had just accepted the fact that they felt the same way. On the one hand she wanted him to know the truth, but on the other hand she didn't want to distress him or make him frustrated with his loss of memories. "We were good friends."

"Maybe we were more than good friends…?" He eyed her quizzically.

She frowned, "Al, are you remembering something?"

"No, but…like I said," he shrugged slightly, "sometimes I get déjà vu. I know that Winry and I were good friends but with you it's…different. Only slightly, but definitely different. Emily!" He gripped her hand. "Please! Tell me the truth! Were we friends or…?"

She knelt down to meet his eyes. He wasn't that short and was a little taller than her when she knelt on the cold tiled floor. Slowly and sadly she told him the truth, "We weren't really dating…we had different journeys. You and Edward were trying to find a way to get your bodies back and I was stationed in the East at the time. There wasn't really any way for us to be together as we had other…" she struggled to find the right word. "Obligations. But I promised that I would wait for the day when you got your body back and for you to come back to me. You said," her voice softened, "you said you loved me, and I said the same to you. But we didn't go on a date. Not really. We just promised that we would be together one day. And here we are."

"But," he said bitterly, "I can't remember anything."

"It doesn't matter." She shook her head. "We kept our promise. Even if you can't remember, and if our feelings have changed, we still kept our promises."

"'Feelings have changed'?"

She shifted uncomfortably, the coldness seeping from the floor into her bones. "Well, mine haven't changed. But…" she mumbled and trailed off. She rose abruptly, dusted off her trousers and asked brightly, "Gee, I'm hungry! What do you want to eat?"

"Emily-"

"Lasgna?" She interrupted him. "Or pizza?"

"Emily-"

"Take-away? I know a good one not far from here."

"Emily!"

"Or pasta?"

"_Emily!"  
_

His sudden shout made her stop and face him slowly. "What is it, Al?"

"My feelings haven't changed." He told her boldly. "I still…I still…I still love you. I wasn't sure before," he added hurriedly, "but now I am. I love you."

There was pause. Suddenly her eyes filled with the unshed tears. "Oh, Al," She hugged him tightly, breathing in his scent, feeling the brush of his hair against her cheek.

"Thank you for waiting." He whispered quietly and kissed her gently, his fingers buried in her short black hair. She gripped his hands, thankful at last that he was here, with her, and she could see and feel him.

Winry approached the kitchen door and glanced inside. She hesitated, smiled and then turned away to wander around the garden for another five minutes.

* * *

"You sure you have everything?" Emily asked anxiously. Winry and Al sat side-by-side in the train, Al closest to the window. Emily was on the platform outside. The train whistled loudly and grey smoke filled the station.

"For the last time, Emily! We have everything! Geez, you're as bad as Granny!" Winry told her.

"Okay, okay." She laughed nervously. "Call me when you get there, okay?"

"Sure, sure." The blonde rolled her eyes.

"Emily, don't worry. We'll be fine." Al told her, smiling.

"Yeah." She smiled back at him. "I'll see you soon…" she trailed off, hearing the hollowness in her words. She had no idea when she would see him again. He was going on another journey to find Edward and she supported him completely. She knew that he would never truly be happy and content until he found his brother, or knew what happened to him.

"Don't worry." He repeated. "I'll come back. Will you wait for me?"

"I promise." The train began to move and she walked quickly alongside it, then began jogging. "Promise me you'll come back!" She shouted above the whistle and pounding churning of the wheels.

"I promise!" Al opened the window and leaned out, waving. "I'll definitely come back! With nii-san and Winry!"

"Right!" She laughed and stopped at the end of the platform. She waved, "I'll be waiting!" She kept on waving at Al until he disappeared from sight as the train turned a corner.


	16. Epilogue: All I ask of you

**Disclaimer: Emily is my OC. But I have no rights to FMA. Cry.**

A/N: The conclusion. Please enjoy it!!! Thanks to all of those who reviewed (or even criticised lol). Ahh I always feel sad when I finish a fic I like...  
The 'they're not waiting for us' comes from the movie. I got a fan-sub of it so I don't know if it's on the official version, but the line struck me as quite poetic. For some weird reason...

* * *

Time passed. The cherry blossoms bloomed then faded. Summer turned to winter. Sometimes Alphonse appeared unannounced at Emily's doorstop. His appearances were erratic – he would stay for days, or weeks and then leave not to return until the next day, or the next week, the next month or even the next year.

Emily was still in the military. She had taken a desk job following the complete reformation and rebuilding of the country following the mysterious appearance of flying machines and devastating earthquakes. No-one had been able to fully explain what had happened and they remained as enshrouded in darkness and mystery as when Edward disappeared.

She was doing laundry on a sunny day. The white sheets waving in the wind as freely as the white clouds that floated high above in the sky. She still kept that one spare room ready for unexpected guests. She wondered today if Al would appear. Winry even. She sadly hoped she would see Edward again. Whenever she saw Al or Winry she always resisted asking questions related to Ed and his disappearance. She didn't want to mention something so painful or cause hurtful, grieving memories to return unwillingly.

She sighed and took the clothes peg out of her mouth to pin it onto the edge of a third white sheet. She smoothed the sheet with her hands and bent down to pick up another sheet when she spotted someone standing beyond the gate.

"W-Winry!" Emily said in surprise and delight. The blonde smiled at her, a large hat shadowing her face. "How are you?" Emily asked as she hurried to her. Her footsteps slowed to gentle steps as she saw her expression. "Winry, what happened?"

"Oh, Emily." Winry looked at her with red rimmed, swollen eyes, tears springing into her eyes again. "It seems…I have some explaining to do again…"

* * *

They sat on the stone steps up to the kitchen, enjoying the warm, bright sunshine. Or at least trying to. The smell of washing powder filled the air and the breeze gently ruffled their hair and dried the tear tracks on Winry's cheeks.

"They're…gone?" Emily asked dumbly.

"Yes." Winry sniffed and wiped her nose. "Al and Ed went in this giant machine which was flying in the sky…and no-one's seen them since. Colonel Mustang said they have gone to the other side of the door, and Ed requested that he destroy the door linking the two worlds."

"But…what about Al?" The words tumbled dumbly out of her mouth. It wasn't possible.

"I'm sorry, Emily." She said quietly and softly. "He went with Ed to the other side of the door."

Emily closed her eyes, feeling the sting of tears in the corner of her eyes. "I see." Her throat clogged up and she breathed slowly.

"He wouldn't have done it unless he knew he was coming back," Winry said quickly.

"No," Emily shook her head sadly. "He's not coming back. But…that's okay." She opened her eyes and watched the white clouds sail by lazily, understanding filling her. "It's okay because I knew he couldn't really be happy without Edward. I'm glad that Edward is okay, and that he is too. I'm glad that…they can stay together. In fact, I think he made the right choice."

"Yeah." Winry agreed. "I think so too. Those idiots! Leaving us pretty maidens behind!" She huffed and they laughed together.

Their laughter died down and they sat in comfortable silence.

"They're not waiting for us anymore, are they?" Winry said, a sad, small smile on her lips.

Emily looked at her in surprise and then realized that she was right. The brothers had been the ones doing the waiting – as long as they had their journey their life was on hold. They had been waiting, patiently, for the answers of the Philosopher's Stone to come to them and for them to start living their lives again. But everyone had waited. She and Winry had also waited for that day.

"No. They're not. But we're not waiting either." She told her. "They achieved what they set out to do. No-one has to wait for them anymore."

"You're right. All we can hope is that they're happy. Where-ever they are."

"Yes." Emily smiled, feeling the warmth of the sun on her face as she lifted it up. "I hope they're happy."

And she knew that, whatever happened, she would always love him.

* * *

It was another ball and he was beginning to get bored of them. At least he knew how to dance and he silently thanked her in his heart, feeling once more the pang of regret that he had had to leave her.

'_But she'll understand. I know she'll understand.' _He thought and smiled to himself as he sipped the champagne and watched the waltzing figures dance past. It was the same as the last ball, all basked in golden light from overhead chandeliers and the women in bright, coloured frocks – all varying colours of one limited rainbow spectrum.

He nursed the glass in his hand, swirling the fizzing liquid. With his other hand he stretched the collar of his white shirt, careful not to disturb the black tie he had spent hours doing. His nii-san had been no help – he had just stood there and laughed at his struggling brother preparing for the political ball with the British Prime Minister.

They had spent the last few months trying to track down the man with the destructive bomb and so far had no success. Their journey had led them to meet many new people – mainly politicians. And so they had found themselves invited to lucrative events like this one.

He shifted awkwardly, his black shoes pinching his feet. His nii-san was dancing with a girl they had met recently. She looked, to him, like their blonde childhood friend but older. His nii-san disregarded any resemblance but he knew that his brother felt the same. Going to a parallel world meant they met similar people – their appearance and souls were the same. Sometimes the familiar faces were a relief and other times it was painful, reminding them how much they had lost. But they were building friendships with those people and on occasions it was like they had never left Amestris at all.

"Excuse me?"

He turned his head and looked down. His face paled and he suddenly felt as though he had been punched in the stomach.

The black haired and green-eyed woman smiled brightly up at him. "I was wondering…have we met?"

He shook his head and cleared his throat, regaining his self-control. "No, we haven't met before."

She frowned. "Hmm. Well, I know this might sound sudden but…would you like to dance?"

Still as bold as ever. He smiled and put the glass down. He offered a hand, "I would love to."

She smiled brightly, that smile he knew so well since he regained his memories, that smile which brightened his recurring dreams. She placed her hand in his and they walked slowly to the dance floor. He spotted his brother waltzing past with their childhood friend, or the look-alike. His brother winked at him and he blushed.

The orchestra picked up a new song and their two lead singers began together. He felt the prick of irony as they danced.

_'Share each day with me, each night, each morning...'_

"I'm, uh, Emily Sanders." She said suddenly, embarrassed by her boldness and wondering where it was coming from. He felt the warmth of her hand, smelled her sweet lilac scent and thanked whatever God was out there that they had met again and that he could now feel her.

"Alphonse. Alphonse Elric." He smiled down at her, felt tears prick his eyes but didn't allow them to fall. _Maybe this time…together, we can find happiness._

**END**


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